Mounting Spring Elements on Semiconductor Devices, and Wafer-Level Testing Methodology

ABSTRACT

Resilient contact structures are mounted directly to bond pads on semiconductor dies, prior to the dies being singulated (separated) from a semiconductor wafer. This enables the semiconductor dies to be exercised (e.g., tested and/or burned-in) by connecting to the semiconductor dies with a circuit board or the like having a plurality of terminals disposed on a surface thereof. Subsequently, the semiconductor dies may be singulated from the semiconductor wafer, whereupon the same resilient contact structures can be used to effect interconnections between the semiconductor dies and other electronic components (such as wiring substrates, semiconductor packages, etc.). Using the all-metallic composite interconnection elements of the present invention as the resilient contact structures, burn-in can be performed at temperatures of at least 150° C., and can be completed in less than 60 minutes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a continuation-in-part of commonly-owned,copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/452,255 (hereinafter“PARENT CASE”), filed May 26, 1995 (status: pending), which is acontinuation-in-part of commonly-owned, copending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/340,144 filed Nov. 15, 1994 (status: pending)and its counterpart PCT patent application number PCT/US94/13373 filedNov. 16, 1994 (published 26 May 95 as WO 95/14314), both of which arecontinuations-in-part of commonly-owned, copending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/152,812, filed Nov. 16, 1993 (status:pending/allowed).

This patent application is also a continuation-in-part ofcommonly-owned, copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/526,246,filed Sep. 21, 1995 (status: pending), and of commonly-owned, copendingU.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/533,584, filed Oct. 18, 1995(status: pending), and of commonly-owned, copending U.S. PatentApplication No. (docket 94-553-US), filed Nov. 9, 1995.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to making temporary, pressure connections betweenelectronic components and, more particularly, to techniques for“exercising” (performing test and burn-in procedures upon) semiconductordevices prior to their packaging, preferably prior to the individualsemiconductor devices being singulated (separated) from a semiconductorwafer.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Individual semiconductor (integrated circuit) devices (dies) aretypically produced by creating several identical devices on asemiconductor wafer, using know techniques of photolithography,deposition, and the like. Generally, these processes are intended tocreate a plurality of fully-functional integrated circuit devices, priorto singulating (severing) the individual dies from the semiconductorwafer. In practice, however, certain physical defects in the waferitself and certain defects in the processing of the wafer inevitablylead to some of the dies being “good” (fully-functional) and some of thedies being “bad” (non-functional). It is generally desirable to be ableto identify which of the plurality of dies on a wafer are good diesprior to their packaging, and preferably prior to their being singulatedfrom the wafer. To this end, a wafer “tester” or “prober” mayadvantageously be employed to make a plurality of discrete pressureconnections to a like plurality of discrete connection pads (bond pads)on the dies, and provide signals (including power) to the dies. In thismanner, the semiconductor dies can be exercised (tested and burned in),prior to singulating the dies from the wafer. A conventional componentof a wafer tester is a “probe card” to which a plurality of probeelements are connected—tips of the probe elements effecting the pressureconnections to the respective bond pads of the semiconductor dies.

Certain difficulties are inherent in any technique for probingsemiconductor dies. For example, modern integrated circuits include manythousands of transistor elements requiring many hundreds of bond padsdisposed in close proximity to one another (e.g., 5 milscenter-to-center). Moreover, the layout of the bond pads need not belimited to single rows of bond pads disposed close to the peripheraledges of the die (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,453,583).

To effect reliable pressure connections between the probe elements andthe semiconductor die one must be concerned with several parametersincluding, but not limited to: alignment, probe force, overdrive,contact force, balanced contact force, scrub, contact resistance, andplanarization. A general discussion of these parameters may be found inU.S. Pat. No. 4,837,622, entitled HIGH DENSITY PROBE CARD, incorporatedby reference herein, which discloses a high density epoxy ring probecard including a unitary printed circuit board having a central openingadapted to receive a preformed epoxy ring array of probe elements.

Generally, prior art probe card assemblies include a plurality oftungsten needles extending as cantilevers from a surface of a probecard. The tungsten needles may be mounted in any suitable manner to theprobe card, such as by the intermediary of an epoxy ring, as discussedhereinabove. Generally, in any case, the needles are wired to terminalsof the probe card through the intermediary of a separate and distinctwire connecting the needles to the terminals of the probe card.

Probe cards are typically formed as circular rings, with hundreds ofprobe elements (needles) extending from an inner periphery of the ring(and wired to terminals of the probe card). Circuit modules, andconductive traces (lines) of preferably equal length, are associatedwith each of the probe elements. This ring-shape layout makes itdifficult, and in some cases impossible, to probe a plurality ofunsingulated semiconductor dies (multiple sites) on a wafer, especiallywhen the bond pads of each semiconductor die are arranged in other thantwo linear arrays along two opposite edges of the semiconductor die.

Wafer testers may alternately employ a probe membrane having a centralcontact bump area, as is discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,422,574, entitledLARGE SCALE PROTRUSION MEMBRANE FOR SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES UNDER TESTWITH VERY HIGH PIN COUNTS, incorporated by reference herein. As noted inthis patent, “A test system typically comprises a test controller forexecuting and controlling a series of test programs, a wafer dispensingsystem for mechanically handling and positioning wafers in preparationfor testing and a probe card for maintaining an accurate mechanicalcontact with the device-under-test (DUT).” (column 1, lines 41-46).

Additional references, incorporated by reference herein, as indicativeof the state of the art in testing semiconductor devices, include U.S.Pat. No. 5,442,282 (TESTING AND EXERCISING INDIVIDUAL UNSINGULATED DIESON A WAFER); U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,898 (HIGH DENSITY PROBE CARD FORTESTING ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS); U.S. Pat. No. 5,378,982 TEST PROBE FORPANEL HAVING AN OVERLYING PROTECTIVE MEMBER ADJACENT PANEL CONTACTS);U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,027 (RIGID-FLEX CIRCUITS WITH RAISED FEATURES AS ICTEST PROBES); U.S. Pat. No. 5,180,977 (MEMBRANE PROBE CONTACT BUMPCOMPLIANCY SYSTEM); U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,907 (PROBE SYSTEM FOR DEVICE ANDCIRCUIT TESTING); U.S. Pat. No. 4,757,256 (HIGH DENSITY PROBE CARD);U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,692 (PROBE DEVICE FOR INTEGRATED CIRCUIT WAFERS);and U.S. Pat. No. 3,990,689 (ADJUSTABLE HOLDER ASSEMBLY FOR POSITIONINGA VACUUM CHUCK).

Generally, interconnections between electronic components can beclassified into the two broad categories of “relatively permanent” and“readily demountable”.

An example of a “relatively permanent” connection is a solder joint.Once two components are soldered to one another, a process ofunsoldering must be used to separate the components. A wire bond isanother example of a “relatively permanent connection.

An example of a “readily demountable” connection is rigid pins of oneelectronic component being received by resilient socket elements ofanother electronic component. The socket elements exert a contact force(pressure) on the pins in an amount sufficient to ensure a reliableelectrical connection therebetween.

Interconnection elements intended to make pressure contact withterminals of an electronic component are referred to herein as “springs”or “spring elements”. Generally, a certain minimum contact force isdesired to effect reliable pressure contact to electronic components(e.g., to terminals on electronic components). For example, a contact(load) force of approximately 15 grams (including as little as 2 gramsor less and as much as 150 grams or more, per contact) may be desired toensure that a reliable electrical connection is made to a terminal of anelectronic component which may be contaminated with films on itssurface, or which has corrosion or oxidation products on its surface.The minimum contact force required of each spring demands either thatthe yield strength of the spring material or that the size of the springelement are increased. As a general proposition, the higher the yieldstrength of a material, the more difficult it will be to work with(e.g., punch, bend, etc.). And the desire to make springs smalleressentially rules out making them larger in cross-section.

Probe elements are a class of spring elements of particular relevance tothe present invention. Prior art probe elements are commonly fabricatedfrom titanium, a relatively hard (high yield strength) material. When itis desired to mount such relatively hard materials to terminals of anelectronic component, relatively “hostile” (e.g., high temperature)processes such as brazing are required. Such “hostile” processes aregenerally not desirable (and often not feasible) in the context ofcertain relatively “fragile” electronic components such as semiconductordevices. In contrast thereto, wire bonding is an example of a relatively“friendly” processes which is much less potentially damaging to fragileelectronic components than brazing. Soldering is another example of arelatively “friendly” process. However, both solder and gold arerelatively soft (low yield strength) materials which will not functionwell as spring elements.

A subtle problem associated with interconnection elements, includingspring contacts, is that, often, the terminals of an electroniccomponent are not perfectly coplanar. Interconnection elements lackingin some mechanism incorporated therewith for accommodating these“tolerances” (gross non-planarities) will be hard pressed to makeconsistent contact pressure contact with the terminals of the electroniccomponent.

The following U.S. Patents, incorporated by reference herein, are citedas being of general interest vis-a-vis making connections, particularlypressure connections, to electronic components: U.S. Pat. No. 5,386,344(FLEX CIRCUIT, CARD ELASTOMERIC CABLE CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY); U.S. Pat. No.5,336,380 (SPRING BIASED TAPERED CONTACT ELEMENTS FOR ELECTRICALCONNECTORS AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT PACKAGES); U.S. Pat. No. 5,317,479(PLATED COMPLIANT LEAD); U.S. Pat. No. 5,086,337 (CONNECTING STRUCTUREOF ELECTRONIC PART AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE USING THE STRUCTURE); U.S. Pat.No. 5,067,007 (SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE HAVING LEADS FOR MOUNTING TO ASURFACE OF A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD); U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,069(SEMICONDUCTOR PACKAGE HAVING LEADS THAT BREAK-AWAY FROM SUPPORTS); U.S.Pat. No. 4,893,172 (CONNECTING STRUCTURE FOR ELECTRONIC PART AND METHODOF MANUFACTURING THE SAME); U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,814 (ELECTRICAL CIRCUITBOARD INTERCONNECT); U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,564 (LEADFORM FOR USE WITHSURFACE MOUNTED COMPONENTS); U.S. Pat. No. 4,764,848 (SURFACE MOUNTEDARRAY STRAIN RELIEF DEVICE); U.S. Pat. No. 4,667,219 (SEMICONDUCTOR CHIPINTERFACE); U.S. Pat. No. 4,642,889 (COMPLIANT INTERCONNECTION ANDMETHOD THEREFOR); U.S. Pat. No. 4,330,165 (PRESS-CONTACT TYPEINTERCONNECTORS); U.S. Pat. No. 4,295,700 (INTERCONNECTORS); U.S. Pat.No. 4,067,104 (METHOD OF FABRICATING AN ARRAY OF FLEXIBLE METALLICINTERCONNECTS FOR COUPLING MICROELECTRONICS COMPONENTS); U.S. Pat. No.3,795,037 (ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR DEVICES); U.S. Pat. No. 3,616,532(MULTILAYER PRINTED CIRCUIT ELECTRICAL INTERCONNECTION DEVICE); and U.S.Pat. No. 3,509,270 (INTERCONNECTION FOR PRINTED CIRCUITS AND METHOD OFMAKING SAME).

Generally, throughout the probe techniques described hereinabove, aprobe card or the like having a plurality of resilient contactstructures extending from or upon a surface thereof is urged against asemiconductor wafer to make pressure contacts with a correspondingplurality of terminals (bond pads) on an individual semiconductor die.In some cases, pressure contact with a limited number (e.g., four) ofunsingulated dies arranged end-to-end can be made, depending upon thelayout of the bond pads on the semiconductor dies (e.g., a linear arrayof bond pads on each of the two side edges of the dies). (The end-to-enddies can be treated as one long die having two rows of bond pads.)

A limited number of techniques are suggested in the prior art forproviding semiconductor chip assemblies with terminals that are biasedaway from the surface of the semiconductor die (chip). U.S. Pat. No.5,414,298, entitled SEMICONDUCTOR CHIP ASSEMBLIES AND COMPONENTS WITHPRESSURE CONTACT, discloses that such an assembly “can be extremelycompact and may occupy an area only slightly larger than the area of thechip itself.”

One might be tempted to surmise that it is a simple intuitive step toexpand such techniques to wafer-level. To the contrary, it is not at allapparent how such “assemblies” which are larger than the die could beaccommodated at wafer-level, without requiring there to be a greatlyexpanded kerf (scribing) area disposed between each adjacent die.Additionally, it is not at all apparent how such “assemblies” would befabricated upon a plurality of unsingulated dies. Moreover, suchassemblies are generally constrained to “translating” peripheral arrays(i.e., a peripheral (edge) layout of bond pads on a semiconductor die)to area arrays (e.g., rows and columns) of terminals, and require a gooddeal of valuable “real estate” to effect the translation. Routing theconnections is one serious limitation, and typically the connections“fan-in”. The use of non-metallic materials (i.e., materials incapableof sustaining high temperatures) is another concern.

Another serious concern with any technique such as is described in theaforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,298 is that the face of the die iscovered. This is generally undesirable, and is particularly undesirablein the context of gallium arsenide (GaAs) semiconductor devices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION (SUMMARY) OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique fortesting (exercising and/or burning-in) semiconductor dies, prior totheir being singulated (separated) from a semiconductor wafer.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a technique forprobing semiconductor dies, prior to their being singulated (separated)from a semiconductor wafer, without being constrained by the arrangementof dies or the layout of bond pads on the dies.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a technique forprobing semiconductor dies, prior to their being singulated (separated)from a semiconductor wafer, with the requisite resiliency and/orcompliance being resident on the semiconductor dies, rather thanrequiring the probe cards to be provided with resilient contactstructures extending therefrom.

It is another object of the invention to mount resilient contactstructures directly to semiconductor devices, thereby permittingexercising (testing and burning-in) the devices via the resilientcontact structures, and using the same resilient contact structures forfinal packaging of the semiconductor devices.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a technique forsatisfactorily burning-in semiconductor devices in several minutes(versus several hours).

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improvedspring element (resilient contact structure) that can be mounteddirectly to a terminal of an electronic component.

It is another object of the invention to provide interconnectionelements that are suitable for making pressure contact to electroniccomponents.

According to the invention, spring contact elements (compositeinterconnection elements) are mounted directly to semiconductor dies.Preferably, the spring contact elements are mounted to the semiconductordies prior to the semiconductor dies being singulated (separated) from asemiconductor wafer. In this manner, a plurality of pressure contactscan be made to one or more unsingulated semiconductor dies (devices)using a “simple” test board to power-up the semiconductor devices, andthe like.

As used herein, a “simple” test board is a substrate having a pluralityof terminals, or electrodes, as contrasted with a traditional “probecard” which is a substrate having a plurality of probe elementsextending from a surface thereof. A simple test board is less expensive,and more readily configured than a traditional probe card. Moreover,certain physical constraints inherent in traditional probe cards are notencountered when using a simple test board to make the desired pressurecontacts with semiconductor devices.

In this manner, a plurality of unsingulated semiconductor dies can beexercised (tested and/or burned in) prior to the semiconductor diesbeing singulated (separated) from the wafer.

According to an aspect of the invention, the same spring contactelements which are mounted to the semiconductor dies and which are usedto exercise the semiconductor dies can be used to make permanentconnections to the semiconductor dies after they have been singulatedfrom the wafer.

According to an aspect of the invention, the resilient contactstructures are preferably, formed as “composite interconnectionelements” which are fabricated directly upon the terminals of thesemiconductor device. The “composite” (multilayer) interconnectionelement is fabricated by mounting an elongate element (“core”) to anelectronic component, shaping the core to have a spring shape, andovercoating the core to enhance the physical (e.g., spring)characteristics of the resulting composite interconnection elementand/or to securely anchor the resulting composite interconnectionelement to the electronic component. The resilient contact structures ofthe interposer component may also be formed as composite interconnectionelements.

The use of the term “composite”, throughout the description set forthherein, is consistent with a ‘generic’ meaning of the term (e.g., formedof two, or more elements), and is not to be confused with any usage ofthe term “composite” in other fields of endeavor, for example, as it maybe applied to materials such as glass, carbon or other fibers supportedin a matrix of resin or the like.

As used herein, the term “spring shape” refers to virtually any shape ofan elongate element which will exhibit elastic (restorative) movement ofan end (tip) of the elongate element with respect to a force applied tothe tip. This includes elongate elements shaped to have one or morebends, as well as substantially straight elongate elements.

As used herein, the terms “contact area”, “terminal”, “pad”, and thelike refer to any conductive area on any electronic component to whichan interconnection element is mounted or makes contact.

Alternatively, the core is shaped prior to mounting to an electroniccomponent.

Alternatively, the core is mounted to or is a part of a sacrificialsubstrate which is not an electronic component. The sacrificialsubstrate is removed after shaping, and either before or afterovercoating. According to an aspect of the invention, tips havingvarious topographies can be disposed at the contact ends of theinterconnection elements. (See also FIGS. 11A-11F of the PARENT CASE.)

In an embodiment of the invention, the core is a “soft” material havinga relatively low yield strength, and is overcoated with a “hard”material having a relatively high yield strength. For example, a softmaterial such as a gold wire is attached (e.g., by wire bonding) to abond pad of a semiconductor device and is overcoated (e.g., byelectrochemical plating) with a hard material such nickel and itsalloys.

Vis-a-vis overcoating the core, single and multi-layer overcoatings,“rough” overcoatings having microprotrusions (see also FIGS. 5C and 5Dof the PARENT CASE), and overcoatings extending the entire length of oronly a portion of the length of the core, are described. In the lattercase, the tip of the core may suitably be exposed for making contact toan electronic component (see also FIG. 5B of the PARENT CASE).

Generally, throughout the description set forth herein, the term“plating” is used as exemplary of a number of techniques for overcoatingthe core. It is within the scope of this invention that the core can beovercoated by any suitable technique including, but not limited to:various processes involving deposition of materials out of aqueoussolutions; electrolytic plating; electroless plating; chemical vapordeposition (CVD); physical vapor deposition (PVD); processes causing thedeposition of materials through induced disintegration of liquid orsolid precursors; and the like, all of these techniques for depositingmaterials being generally well known.

Generally, for overcoating the core with a metallic material such asnickel, electrochemical processes are preferred, especially electrolessplating.

In another embodiment of the invention, the core is an elongate elementof a “hard” material, inherently suitable to functioning as a springelement, and is mounted at one end to a terminal of an electroniccomponent. The core, and at least an adjacent area of the terminal, isovercoated with a material which will enhance anchoring the core to theterminal. In this manner, it is not necessary that the core bewell-mounted to the terminal prior to overcoating, and processes whichare less potentially damaging to the electronic component may beemployed to “tack” the core in place for subsequent overcoating. These“friendly” processes include soldering, gluing, and piercing an end ofthe hard core into a soft portion of the terminal.

Preferably, the core is in the form of a wire. Alternatively, the coreis a flat tab (conductive metallic ribbon).

Representative materials, both for the core and for the overcoatings,are disclosed.

In the main hereinafter, techniques involving beginning with arelatively soft (low yield strength) core, which is generally of verysmall dimension (e.g., 3.0 mil or less) are described. Soft materials,such as gold, which attach easily to semiconductor devices, generallylack sufficient resiliency to function as springs. (Such soft, metallicmaterials exhibit primarily plastic, rather than elastic deformation.)Other soft materials which may attach easily to semiconductor devicesand possess appropriate resiliency are often electricallynon-conductive, as in the case of most elastomeric materials. In eithercase, desired structural and electrical characteristics can be impartedto the resulting composite interconnection element by the overcoatingapplied over the core. The resulting composite interconnection elementcan be made very small, yet can exhibit appropriate contact forces.Moreover, a plurality of such composite interconnection elements can bearranged at a fine pitch (e.g., 10 mils), even though they have a length(e.g., 100 mils) which is much greater than the distance to aneighboring composite interconnection element (the distance betweenneighboring interconnection elements being termed “pitch”).

It is within the scope of this invention that composite interconnectionelements can be fabricated on a microminiature scale, for example as“microsprings” for connectors and sockets, having cross-sectionaldimensions on the order of twenty-five microns (μm), or less. Thisability to manufacture reliable interconnection having dimensionsmeasured in microns, rather than mils, squarely addresses the evolvingneeds of existing interconnection technology and future area arraytechnology.

The composite interconnection elements of the present invention exhibitsuperior electrical characteristics, including electrical conductivity,solderability and low contact resistance. In many cases, deflection ofthe interconnection element in response to applied contact forcesresults in a “wiping” contact, which helps ensure that a reliablecontact is made.

An additional advantage of the present invention is that connectionsmade with the interconnection elements of the present invention arereadily demountable. Soldering, to effect the interconnection to aterminal of an electronic component is optional, but is generally notpreferred at a system level.

According to an aspect of the invention, techniques are described formaking interconnection elements having controlled impedance. Thesetechniques generally involve coating (e.g., electrophoretically) aconductive core or an entire composite interconnection element with adielectric material (insulating layer), and overcoating the dielectricmaterial with an outer layer of a conductive material. By grounding theouter conductive material layer, the resulting interconnection elementcan effectively be shielded, and its impedance can readily becontrolled. (See also FIG. 10K of the PARENT CASE.)

According to an aspect of the invention, interconnection elements can bepre-fabricated as individual units, for later attachment to electroniccomponents. Various techniques for accomplishing this objective are setforth herein. Although not specifically covered in this document, it isdeemed to be relatively straightforward to fabricate a machine that willhandle the mounting of a plurality of individual interconnectionelements to a substrate or, alternatively, suspending a plurality ofindividual interconnection elements in an elastomer, or on a supportsubstrate.

It should clearly be understood that the composite interconnectionelement of the present invention differs dramatically frominterconnection elements of the prior art which have been coated toenhance their electrical conductivity characteristics or to enhancetheir resistance to corrosion.

The overcoating of the present invention is specifically intended tosubstantially enhance anchoring of the interconnection element to aterminal of an electronic component and/or to impart desired resilientcharacteristics to the resulting composite interconnection element.Stresses (contact forces) are directed to portions of theinterconnection elements which are specifically intended to absorb thestresses.

It should also be appreciated that the present invention providesessentially a new technique for making spring structures. Generally, theoperative structure of the resulting spring is a product of plating,rather than of bending and shaping. This opens the door to using a widevariety of materials to establish the spring shape, and a variety of“friendly” processes for attaching the “falsework” of the core toelectronic components. The overcoating functions as a “superstructure”over the “falsework” of the core, both of which terms have their originsin the field of civil engineering.

A distinct advantage of the present invention is that probe elements(resilient contact structures) can be fabricated directly on terminalsof a semiconductor device without requiring additional materials, suchas brazing or soldering.

According to an aspect of the invention, any of the resilient contactstructures may be formed as at least two composite interconnectionelements.

Among the benefits of the present invention are:

(a) the composite interconnection elements are all metallic, permittingburn-in to be performed at elevated temperatures and, consequently, in ashorter time.

(b) the composite interconnection elements are free-standing, and aregenerally not limited by the bond pad layout of semiconductor devices.

(c) the composite interconnection elements of the present invention canbe fashioned to have their tips at a greater pitch (spacing) than theirbases, thereby immediately (e.g., at the first level interconnect)commencing and facilitating the process of spreading pitch fromsemiconductor pitch (e.g., 10 mils) to wiring substrate pitch (e.g., 100mils).

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent in light of the following description thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will be made in detail to preferred embodiments of theinvention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Although the invention will be described in the context ofthese preferred embodiments, it should be understood that it is notintended to limit the spirit and scope of the invention to theseparticular embodiments.

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal portion, includingone end, of an interconnection element, according to an embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal portion, includingone end, of an interconnection element, according to another embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal portion, includingone end of an interconnection element, according to another embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 1D is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal portion, includingone end of an interconnection element, according to another embodimentof the invention;

FIG. 1E is a cross-sectional view of a longitudinal portion, includingone end of an interconnection element, according to another embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view of an interconnection element mountedto a terminal of an electronic component and having a multi-layeredshell, according to the invention.

FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of an interconnection element having amulti-layered shell, wherein an intermediate layer is of a dielectricmaterial, according to the invention.

FIG. 2C is a perspective view of a plurality of interconnection elementsmounted to an electronic component (e.g., a probe card insert),according to the invention.

FIG. 2D is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary first step of atechnique for manufacturing interconnection elements, according to theinvention.

FIG. 2E is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary further step of thetechnique of FIG. 2D for manufacturing interconnection elements,according to the invention.

FIG. 2F is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary further step of thetechnique of FIG. 2E for manufacturing interconnection elements,according to the invention.

FIG. 2G is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary plurality ofindividual interconnection elements fabricated according to thetechnique of FIGS. 2D-2F, according to the invention.

FIG. 2H is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary plurality ofinterconnection elements fabricated according to the technique of FIGS.2D-2F, and associated in a prescribed spatial relationship with oneanother, according to the invention.

FIG. 2I is a cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment formanufacturing interconnection elements, showing a one end of oneelement, according to the invention.

FIG. 3A is a side view of a wire having its free end bonded to a metallayer applied to a substrate, through an opening in a photoresist layer,according to the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a side view of the substrate of FIG. 3A, with the wireovercoated, according to the present invention.

FIG. 3C is a side view of the substrate of FIG. 3B, with the photoresistlayer removed and the metal layer partially removed, according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 3D is a perspective view of a semiconductor device, formedaccording to the techniques set forth in FIGS. 3A-3C, according to thepresent invention.

FIGS. 4A-4E are side views of a technique for mounting resilient contactstructures to a semiconductor die, according to the present invention.

FIGS. 4F and 4G are side views of a technique, similar to that describedwith respect to FIGS. 4A-4E, for mounting resilient contact structuresto semiconductor dies prior to their singulation from a wafer, accordingto the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective, partial view of a plurality of resilientcontact structures mounted to multiple die sites on a semiconductorwafer, according to the present invention.

FIG. 5A is a perspective, partial view of a plurality of resilientcontact structures mounted to a semiconductor die, and increasing theeffective pitch of the “pin out” (bond pad spacing, as used herein),according to the present invention.

FIGS. 6A-6C are perspective views of a process for forming resilientcontact structures on dies (either on a wafer or diced therefrom),according to the present invention.

FIG. 6D is a perspective view of an alternate (to FIGS. 6A-6C) processfor forming resilient contact structures on dies (either on a wafer ordiced therefrom), according to the present invention.

FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view of unsingulated semiconductor dieswith resilient contact structures mounted directly thereto, undergoingtesting and/or burn in, according to the invention.

FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view of a singulated semiconductor die ofFIG. 7A effecting an interconnection with a wiring substrate, using thesame resilient contact structures mounted directly thereto, according tothe invention.

FIG. 7C is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary path that asemiconductor device follows, from wafer to packaging, according to theprior art.

FIG. 7D is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary path that asemiconductor device follows, from wafer to packaging, according to thepresent invention.

FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view of a technique for fabricating tipstructures for probe elements, according to the invention.

FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view of further steps in the technique ofFIG. 8A, according to the invention.

FIG. 8C is a side view, partially in cross-section and partially in fullof a space transformer component, according to the invention.

FIG. 8D is a side view, partially in cross-section and partially in fullof the space transformer component of FIG. 8C being joined with the tipstructures of FIG. 8B, according to the invention.

FIG. 8E is a side view, partially in cross-section and partially in fullof a further step, in joining the space transformer component of FIG. 8Cjoined with the tip structures of FIG. 8B, according to the invention.

FIG. 8F is a side view showing a portion of a contact structureinterconnecting to an external component, according to the presentinvention.

FIGS. 9A-9D are perspective views of a technique for fabricating aresilient contact structure suitable for making interconnection to anexposed, middle portion of the wire stem, according to the presentinvention.

FIG. 9E is a perspective view of a technique for fabricating multiplefree-standing contact structures without severing the wire stem,according to the present invention.

FIG. 9F is a side view of an alternate technique for fabricatingmultiple free-standing contact structures without severing the wirestem, according to the present invention.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are side views of an alternate technique for multiplefree-standing contact structures without severing the wire stem,according to the present invention.

FIGS. 10C and 10D are side views, illustrating a technique for makingfree-standing wire stems, without electronic flame off, in this case,from loops, according to the present invention.

In the side views presented herein, often portions of the side view arepresented in cross-section, for illustrative clarity. For example, inmany of the views, the wire stem is shown full, as a bold line, whilethe overcoat is shown in true cross-section (often withoutcrosshatching).

In the figures presented herein, the size of certain elements are oftenexaggerated (not to scale, vis-a-vis other elements in the figure), forillustrative clarity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This patent application is directed to techniques of testing (includingexercising and performing burn-in) semiconductor devices while they areresident on a semiconductor wafer (i.e., prior to their being singulatedfrom the wafer). As will be evident from the description that follows,the techniques involve fabricating resilient contact structures directlyupon the semiconductor devices, making pressure connections to theresilient contact structures for testing the semiconductor devices, andusing the same resilient contact structures to connect to thesemiconductor die after it is singulated from the wafer. Preferably, theresilient contact structures are implemented as “compositeinterconnection elements”, such as have been described in the disclosureof the aforementioned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/452,255, filedMay 26, 1995 (“PARENT CASE”), incorporated by reference herein. Thispatent application summarizes several of the techniques disclosed in thePARENT CASE in the discussions of FIGS. 1A-1E and 2A-2I.

An important aspect of the preferred technique for practicing thepresent invention is that a “composite” interconnection element can beformed by starting with a core (which may be mounted to a terminal of anelectronic component), then overcoating the core with an appropriatematerial to: (1) establish the mechanical properties of the resultingcomposite interconnection element; and/or (2) when the interconnectionelement is mounted to a terminal of an electronic component, securelyanchor the interconnection element to the terminal. In this manner, aresilient interconnection element (spring element) can be fabricated,starting with a core of a soft material which is readily shaped into aspringable shape and which is readily attached to even the most fragileof electronic components. In light of prior art techniques of formingspring elements from hard materials, is not readily apparent, and isarguably counter-intuitive, that soft materials can form the basis ofspring elements. Such a “composite” interconnection element is generallythe preferred form of resilient contact structure for use in theembodiments of the present invention.

FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D illustrate, in a general manner, various shapesfor composite interconnection elements, according to the presentinvention.

In the main, hereinafter, composite interconnection elements whichexhibit resiliency are described. However, it should be understood thatnon-resilient composite interconnection elements fall within the scopeof the invention.

Further, in the main hereinafter, composite interconnection elementsthat have a soft (readily shaped, and amenable to affixing by friendlyprocesses to electronic components) core, overcoated by hard (springy)materials are described. It is, however, within the scope of theinvention that the core can be a hard material—the overcoat servingprimarily to securely anchor the interconnection element to a terminalof an electronic component.

In FIG. 1A, an electrical interconnection element 110 includes a core112 of a “soft” material (e.g., a material having a yield strength ofless than 40,000 psi), and a shell (overcoat) 114 of a “hard” material(e.g., a material having a yield strength of greater than 80,000 psi).The core 112 is an elongate element shaped (configured) as asubstantially straight cantilever beam, and may be a wire having adiameter of 0.0005-0.0030 inches (0.001 inch=1 mil 25 microns (μm)). Theshell 114 is applied over the already-shaped core 112 by any suitableprocess, such as by a suitable plating process (e.g., by electrochemicalplating).

FIG. 1A illustrates what is perhaps the simplest of spring shapes for aninterconnection element of the present invention—namely, a straightcantilever beam oriented at an angle to a force “F” applied at its tip110 b. When such a force is applied by a terminal of an electroniccomponent to which the interconnection element is making a pressurecontact, the downward (as viewed) deflection of the tip will evidentlyresult in the tip moving across the terminal, in a “wiping” motion. Sucha wiping contact ensures a reliable contact being made between theinterconnection element and the contacted terminal of the electroniccomponent.

By virtue of its “hardness”, and by controlling its thickness(0.00025-0.00500 inches), the shell 114 imparts a desired resiliency tothe overall interconnection element 110. In this manner, a resilientinterconnection between electronic components (not shown) can beeffected between the two ends 110 a and 110 b of the interconnectionelement 110. (In FIG. 1A, the reference numeral 10 a indicates an endportion of the interconnection element 110, and the actual end oppositethe end 110 b is not shown.) In contacting a terminal of an electroniccomponent, the interconnection element 110 would be subjected to acontact force (pressure), as indicated by the arrow labelled “F”.

It is generally preferred that the thickness of the overcoat (whether asingle layer or a multi-layer overcoat) be thicker than the diameter ofthe wire being overcoated. Given the fact that the overall thickness ofthe resulting contact structure is the sum of the thickness of the coreplus twice the thickness of the overcoat, an overcoat having the samethickness as the core (e.g., 1 mil) will manifest itself, in aggregate,as having twice the thickness of the core.

The interconnection element (e.g., 110) will deflect in response to anapplied contact force, said deflection (resiliency) being determined inpart by the overall shape of the interconnection element, in part by thedominant (greater) yield strength of the overcoating material (versusthat of the core), and in part by the thickness of the overcoatingmaterial.

As used herein, the terms “cantilever” and “cantilever beam” are used toindicate that an elongate structure (e.g., the overcoated core 112) ismounted (fixed) at one end, and the other end is free to move, typicallyin response to a force acting generally transverse to the longitudinalaxis of the elongate element. No other specific or limiting meaning isintended to be conveyed or connoted by the use of these terms.

In FIG. 1B, an electrical interconnection element 120 similarly includesa soft core 122 (compare 112) and a hard shell 124 (compare 114). Inthis example, the core 122 is shaped to have two bends, and thus may beconsidered to be S-shaped. As in the example of FIG. 1A, in this manner,a resilient interconnection between electronic components (not shown)can be effected between the two ends 120 a and 120 b of theinterconnection element 120. (In FIG. 1B, reference numeral 120 aindicates an end portion of the interconnection element 120, and theactual end opposite the end 120 b is not shown.) In contacting aterminal of an electronic component, the interconnection element 120would be subjected to a contact force (pressure), as indicated by thearrow labelled “F”.

In FIG. 1C, an electrical interconnection element 130 similarly includesa soft core 132 (compare 112) and a hard shell 134 (compare 114). Inthis example, the core 132 is shaped to have one bend, and may beconsidered to be U-shaped. As in the example of FIG. 1A, in this manner,a resilient interconnection between electronic components (not shown)can be effected between the two ends 130 a and 130 b of theinterconnection element 130. (In FIG. 1C, the reference numeral 130 aindicates an end portion of the interconnection element 130, and theactual end opposite the end 130 b is not shown.) In contacting aterminal of an electronic component, the interconnection element 130could be subjected to a contact force (pressure), as indicated by thearrow labelled “F”. Alternatively, the interconnection element 130 couldbe employed to make contact at other than its end 130 b, as indicated bythe arrow labelled “F′”.

FIG. 1D illustrates another embodiment of a resilient interconnectionelement 140 having a soft core 142 and a hard shell 144. In thisexample, the interconnection element 140 is essentially a simplecantilever (compare FIG. 1A), with a curved tip 140 b, subject to acontact force “F” acting transverse to its longitudinal axis.

FIG. 1E illustrates another embodiment of a resilient interconnectionelement 150 having a soft core 152 and a hard shell 154. In thisexample, the interconnection element 150 is generally “C-shaped”,preferably with a slightly curved tip 150 b, and is suitable for makinga pressure contact as indicated by the arrow labelled “F”.

It should be understood that the soft core can readily be formed intoany springable shape—in other words, a shape that will cause a resultinginterconnection element to deflect resiliently in response to a forceapplied at its tip. For example, the core could be formed into aconventional coil shape. However, a coil shape would not be preferred,due to the overall length of the interconnection element and inductances(and the like) associated therewith and the adverse effect of same oncircuitry operating at high frequencies (speeds).

The material of the shell, or at least one layer of a multi-layer shell(described hereinbelow) has a significantly higher yield strength thanthe material of the core. Therefore, the shell overshadows the core inestablishing the mechanical characteristics (e.g., resiliency) of theresulting interconnection structure. Ratios of shell core yieldstrengths are preferably at least 2:1, including at least 3:1 and atleast 5:1, and may be as high as 10:1. It is also evident that theshell, or at least an outer layer of a multi-layer shell should beelectrically conductive, notably in cases where the shell covers the endof the core. (The parent case, however, describes embodiments where theend of the core is exposed, in which case the core must be conductive.)

From an academic viewpoint, it is only necessary that the springing(spring shaped) portion of the resulting composite interconnectionelement be overcoated with the hard material. From this viewpoint, it isgenerally not essential that both of the two ends of the core beovercoated. As a practical matter, however, it is preferred to overcoatthe entire core. Particular reasons for and advantages accruing toovercoating an end of the core which is anchored (attached) to anelectronic component are discussed in greater detail hereinbelow.

Suitable materials for the core (112, 122, 132, 142) include, but arenot limited to: gold, aluminum, copper, and their alloys. Thesematerials are typically alloyed with small amounts of other metals toobtain desired physical properties, such as with beryllium, cadmium,silicon, magnesium, and the like. It is also possible to use silver,palladium, platinum; metals or alloys such as metals of the platinumgroup of elements. Solder constituted from lead, tin, indium, bismuth,cadmium, antimony and their alloys can be used.

Vis-a-vis attaching an end of the core (wire) to a terminal of anelectronic component (discussed in greater detail hereinbelow),generally, a wire of any material (e.g., gold) that is amenable tobonding (using temperature, pressure and/or ultrasonic energy to effectthe bonding) would be suitable for practicing the invention. It iswithin the scope of this invention that any material amenable toovercoating (e.g., plating), including non-metallic material, can beused for the core.

Suitable materials for the shell (114, 124, 134, 144) include (and, asis discussed hereinbelow, for the individual layers of a multi-layershell), but are not limited to: nickel, and its alloys; copper, cobalt,iron, and their alloys; gold (especially hard gold) and silver, both ofwhich exhibit excellent current-carrying capabilities and good contactis resistivity characteristics; elements of the platinum group; noblemetals; semi-noble metals and their alloys, particularly elements of theplatinum group and their alloys; tungsten and molybdenum. In cases wherea solder-like finish is desired, tin, lead, bismuth, indium and theiralloys can also be used.

The technique selected for applying these coating materials over thevarious core materials set forth hereinabove will, of course, vary fromapplication-to-application. Electroplating and electroless plating aregenerally preferred techniques. Generally, however, it would becounter-intuitive to plate over a gold core. According to an aspect ofthe invention, when plating (especially electroless plating) a nickelshell over a gold core, it is desirable to first apply a thin copperinitiation layer over the gold wire stem, in order to facilitate platinginitiation.

An exemplary interconnection element, such as is illustrated in FIGS.1A-1E may have a core diameter of approximately 0.001 inches and a shellthickness of 0.001 inches—the interconnection element thus having anoverall diameter of approximately 0.003 inches (i.e., core diameter plustwo times the shell thickness). Generally, this thickness of the shellwill be on the order of 0.2-5.0 (one-fifth to five) times the thickness(e.g., diameter) of the core.

Some exemplary parameters for composite interconnection elements are:

(a) A gold wire core having a diameter of 1.5 mils is shaped to have anoverall height of 40 mils and a generally C-shape curve (compare FIG.1E) of 9 mils radius, is plated with 0.75 mils of nickel (overalldiameter=1.5+2×0.75=3 mils), and optionally receives a final overcoat of50 microinches of gold. (e.g., to lower and enhance contact resistance).The resulting composite interconnection element exhibits a springconstant (k) of approximately 3-5 grams/mil. In use, 3-5 mils ofdeflection will result in a contact force of 9-25 grams. This example isuseful in the context of a spring element for an interposer.

(b) A gold wire core having a diameter of 1.0 mils is shaped to have anoverall height of 35 mils, is plated with 1.25 mils of nickel (overalldiameter=1.0+2×1.25=3.5 mils), and optionally receives a final overcoatof 50 microinches of gold. The resulting composite interconnectionelement exhibits a spring constant (k) of approximately 3 grams/mil, andis useful in the context of a spring element for a probe.

(c) A gold wire core having a diameter of 1.5 mils is shaped to have anoverall height of 20 mils and a generally S-shape curve with radii ofapproximately 5 mils, is plated with 0.75 mils of nickel or copper(overall diameter=1.5+2×0.75=3 mils). The resulting compositeinterconnection element exhibits a spring constant (k) of approximately2-3 grams/mil, and is useful in the context of a spring element formounting on a semiconductor device.

As will be illustrated in greater detail hereinbelow, the core need nothave a round cross-section, but may rather be a flat tab (having arectangular cross-section) extending from a sheet. It should beunderstood that, as used herein, the term “tab” is not to be confusedwith the term “TAB” (Tape Automated Bonding).

Multi-Layer Shells

FIG. 2A illustrates an embodiment 200 of an interconnection element 210mounted to an electronic component 212 which is provided with a terminal214. In this example, a soft (e.g., gold) wire core 216 is bonded(attached) at one end 216 a to the terminal 214, is configured to extendfrom the terminal and have a spring shape (compare the shape shown inFIG. 1B), and is severed to have a free end 216 b. Bonding, shaping andsevering a wire in this manner is accomplished using wirebondingequipment. The bond at the end 216 a of the core covers only arelatively small portion of the exposed surface of the terminal 214.

A shell (overcoat) is disposed over the wire core 216 which, in thisexample, is shown as being multi-layered, having an inner layer 218 andan outer layer 220, both of which layers may suitably be applied byplating processes. One or more layers of the multi-layer shell is (are)formed of a hard material (such as nickel and its alloys) to impart adesired resiliency to the interconnection element 210. For example, theouter layer 220 may be of a hard material, and the inner layer may be ofa material that acts as a buffer or barrier layer (or as an activationlayer, or as an adhesion layer) in plating the hard material 220 ontothe core material 216. Alternatively, the inner layer 218 may be thehard material, and the outer layer 220 may be a material (such as softgold) that exhibits superior electrical characteristics, includingelectrical conductivity and solderability. When a solder or braze typecontact is desired, the outer layer of the interconnection element maybe lead-tin solder or gold-tin braze material, respectively.

Anchoring to a Terminal

FIG. 2A illustrates, in a general manner, another key feature of theinvention—namely, that resilient interconnection element can be securelyanchored to a terminal on an electronic component. The attached end 210a of the interconnection element will be subject to significantmechanical stress, as a result of a compressive force (arrow “F”)applied to the free end 210 b of the interconnection element.

As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the overcoat (218, 220) covers not only thecore 216, but also the entire remaining (i.e., other than the bond 216a) exposed surface of the terminal 214 adjacent the core 216 in acontinuous (non-interrupted) manner. This securely and reliably anchorsthe interconnection element 210 to the terminal, the overcoat materialproviding a substantial (e.g., greater than 50%) contribution toanchoring the resulting interconnection element to the terminal.Generally, it is only required that the overcoat material cover at leasta portion of the terminal adjacent the core. It is generally preferred,however, that the overcoat material cover the entire remaining surfaceof the terminal. Preferably, each layer of the shell is metallic.

As a general proposition, the relatively small area at which the core isattached (e.g., bonded) to the terminal is not well suited toaccommodating stresses resulting from contact forces (“F”) imposed onthe resulting composite interconnection element. By virtue of the shellcovering the entire exposed surface of the terminal (other than in therelatively small area comprising the attachment of the core end 216 a tothe terminal) the overall interconnection structure is firmly anchoredto the terminal. The adhesion strength, and ability to react contactforces, of the overcoat will far exceed that of the core end (216 a)itself.

As used herein, the term “electronic component” (e.g., 212) includes,but is not limited to: interconnect and interposer substrates;semiconductor wafers and dies, made of any suitable semiconductingmaterial such as silicon (Si) or gallium-arsenide (GaAs); productioninterconnect sockets; test sockets; sacrificial members, elements andsubstrates, as described in the parent case; semiconductor packages,including ceramic and plastic packages, and chip carriers; andconnectors.

The interconnection element of the present invention is particularlywell suited for use as:

interconnection elements mounted directly to silicon dies, eliminatingthe need for having a semiconductor package;

interconnection elements extending as probes from substrates (describedin greater detail hereinbelow) for testing electronic components; and

interconnection elements of interposers (discussed in greater detailhereinbelow).

The interconnection element of the present invention is unique in thatit benefits from the mechanical characteristics (e.g., high yieldstrength) of a hard material without being limited by the attendanttypically poor bonding characteristic of hard materials. As elaboratedupon in the parent case, this is made possible largely by the fact thatthe shell (overcoat) functions as a “superstructure” over the“falsework.”, of the core, two terms which are borrowed from the milieuof civil engineering. This is very different from plated interconnectionelements of the prior art wherein the plating is used as a protective(e.g., anti-corrosive) coating, and is generally incapable of impartingthe desired mechanical characteristic to the interconnection structure.And this is certainly in marked contrast to any non-metallic,anticorrosive coatings, such as benzotriazole (BTA) applied toelectrical interconnects.

Among the numerous advantages of the present invention are that aplurality of free-standing interconnect structures are readily formed onsubstrates, from different levels thereof such as a PCB having adecoupling capacitor) to a common height above the substrate, so thattheir free ends are coplanar with one another. Additionally, both theelectrical and mechanical (e.g., plastic and elastic) characteristics ofan interconnection element formed according to the invention are readilytailored for particular applications. For example, it may be desirablein a given application that the interconnection elements exhibit bothplastic and elastic deformation. (Plastic deformation may be desired toaccommodate gross non-planarities in components being interconnected bythe interconnection elements.) When elastic behavior is desired, it isnecessary that the interconnection element generate a threshold minimumamount of contact force to effect a reliable contact. It is alsoadvantageous that the tip of the interconnection element makes a wipingcontact with a terminal of an electronic component” due to theoccasional presence of contaminant films on the contacting surfaces.

As used herein, the term “resilient”, as applied to contact structures,implies contact structures (interconnection elements) that exhibitprimarily elastic behavior in response to an applied load (contactforce), and the term “compliant” implies contact structures(interconnection elements) that exhibit both elastic and plasticbehavior in response to an applied load (contact force). As used herein,a “compliant” contact structure is a “resilient” contact structure. Thecomposite interconnection elements of the present invention are aspecial case of either compliant or resilient contact structures.

A number of features are elaborated upon in detail, in the parent case,including, but not limited to: fabricating the interconnection elementson sacrificial substrates; gang-transferring a plurality ofinterconnection elements to an electronic component; providing theinterconnection elements with contact tips, preferably with a roughsurface finish; employing the interconnection elements on an electroniccomponent to make temporary, then permanent connections to theelectronic component; arranging the interconnection elements to havedifferent spacing at their one ends than at their opposite ends;fabricating spring clips and alignment pins in the same process steps asfabricating the interconnection elements; employing the interconnectionelements to accommodate differences in thermal expansion betweenconnected components; eliminating the need for discrete semiconductorpackages (such as for SIMMs); and optionally soldering resilientinterconnection elements (resilient contact structures).

Controlled Impedance

FIG. 2B shows a composite interconnection element 220 having multiplelayers. An innermost portion (inner elongate conductive element) 222 ofthe interconnection element 220 is either an uncoated core or a corewhich has been overcoated, as described hereinabove. The tip 222 b ofthe innermost portion 222 is masked with a suitable masking material(not shown). A dielectric layer 224 is applied over the innermostportion 222 such as by an electrophoretic process. An outer layer 226 ofa conductive material is applied over the dielectric layer 224.

In use, electrically grounding the outer layer 226 will result in theinterconnection element 220 having controlled impedance. An exemplarymaterial for the dielectric layer 224 is a polymeric material, appliedin any suitable manner and to any suitable thickness (e.g., 0.1-3.0mils).

The outer layer 226 may be multi-layer. For example, in instanceswherein the innermost portion 222 is an uncoated core, at least onelayer of the outer layer 226 is a spring material, when it is desiredthat the overall interconnection element exhibit resilience.

Altering Pitch

FIG. 2C illustrates an embodiment 250 wherein a plurality (six of manyshown) of interconnection elements 251.256 are mounted on a surface ofan electronic component 260, such as a probe card insert (a subassemblymounted in a conventional manner to a probe card). Terminals andconductive traces of the probe card insert are omitted from this view,for illustrative clarity. The attached ends 251 a . . . 256 a of theinterconnection elements 251 . . . 256 originate at a first pitch(spacing), such as 0.050-0.100 inches. The interconnection elements 251. . . 256 are shaped and/or oriented so that their free ends (tips) areat a second, finer pitch, such as 0.005-0.010 inches. An interconnectassembly which makes interconnections from a one pitch to another pitchis typically referred to as a “space transformer”.

A benefit of the present invention is that space transformation can beaccomplished by the contact structures (interconnection elements)themselves (at first level interconnect), without the intermediary ofanother component, such as the discrete assembly of the aforementionedU.S. Pat. No. 5,414,298.

As illustrated, the tips 251 b . . . 256 b of the interconnectionelements are arranged in two parallel rows, such as for making contactto (for testing and/or burning in) a semiconductor device having twoparallel rows of bond pads (contact points). The interconnectionelements can be arranged to have other tip patterns, for making contactto electronic components having other contact point patterns, such asarrays.

Generally, throughout, the embodiments disclosed herein, although onlyone interconnection element may be shown, the invention is applicable tofabricating a plurality of interconnection components and arranging theplurality of interconnection elements in a prescribed spatialrelationship with one another, such as in a peripheral pattern or in arectangular array pattern.

Use of Sacrificial Substrates

The mounting of interconnection elements directly to terminals ofelectronic components has been discussed hereinabove. Generallyspeaking, the interconnection elements of the present invention can befabricated upon, or mounted to, any suitable surface of any suitablesubstrate, including sacrificial substrates.

Attention is directed to the PARENT CASE, which describes, for examplewith respect to FIGS. 11A-11F fabricating a plurality of interconnectionstructures (e.g., resilient contact structures) as separate and distinctstructures for subsequent mounting to electronic components, and whichdescribes with respect to FIGS. 12A-12C mounting a plurality ofinterconnection elements to a sacrificial substrate (carrier) thentransferring the plurality of interconnection elements en masse to anelectronic component.

FIGS. 2D-2F illustrate a technique for fabricating a plurality ofinterconnection elements having preformed tip structures, using asacrificial substrate.

FIG. 2D illustrates a first step of the technique 250, in which apatterned layer of masking material 252 is applied onto a surface of asacrificial substrate 254. The sacrificial substrate 254 may be of thin(1-10 mil) copper or aluminum foil, by way of example, and the maskingmaterial 252 may be common photoresist. The masking layer 252 ispatterned to have a plurality (three of many shown) of openings atlocations 256 a, 256 b, 256 c whereat it is desired to fabricateinterconnection elements. The locations 256 a, 256 b and 256 c are, inthis sense, comparable to the terminals of an electronic component. Thelocations 256 a, 256 b and 256 c are preferably treated at this stage tohave a rough or featured surface texture. As shown, this may beaccomplished mechanically with an embossing tool 257 forming depressionsin the foil 254 at the locations 256 a, 256 b and 256 c. Alternatively,the surface of the foil at these locations can be chemically etched tohave a surface texture. Any technique suitable for effecting thisgeneral purpose is within the scope of this invention, for example sandblasting, peening and the like.

Next, a plurality (one of many shown) of conductive tip structures 258are formed at each location (e.g., 256 b), as illustrated by FIG. 2E.This may be accomplished using any suitable technique, such aselectroplating, and may include tip structures having multiple layers ofmaterial. For example, the tip structure 258 may have a thin (e.g.,10-100 microinch) barrier layer of nickel applied onto the sacrificialsubstrate, followed by a thin (e.g., 10 microinch) layer of soft gold,followed by a thin (e.g., 20 microinch) layer of hard gold, followed bya relatively thick (e.g., 200 microinch) layer of nickel, followed by afinal thin (e.g., 100 microinch) layer of soft gold. Generally, thefirst thin barrier layer of nickel is provided to protect the subsequentlayer of gold from being “poisoned” by the material (e.g., aluminum,copper) of the substrate 254, the relatively thick layer of nickel is toprovide strength to the tip structure, and the final thin layer of softgold provides a surface which is readily bonded to. The invention is notlimited to any particulars of how the tip structures are formed on thesacrificial substrate, as these particulars would inevitably vary fromapplication-to-application.

As illustrated by FIG. 2E, a plurality (one of many shown) of cores 260for interconnection elements may be formed on the tip structures 258,such as by any of the techniques of bonding a soft wire core to aterminal of an electronic component described hereinabove. The cores 260are then overcoated with a preferably hard material 262 in the mannerdescribed hereinabove, and the masking material 252 is then removed,resulting in a plurality (three of many shown) of free-standinginterconnection elements 264 mounted to a surface of the sacrificialsubstrate, as illustrated by FIG. 2F.

In a manner analogous to the overcoat material covering at least theadjacent area of a terminal (214) described with respect to FIG. 2A, theovercoat material 262 firmly anchors the cores 260 to their respectivetip structures 258 and, if desired, imparts resilient characteristics tothe resulting interconnection elements 264. As noted in the PARENT CASE,the plurality of interconnection elements mounted to the sacrificialsubstrate may be gang-transferred to terminals of an electroniccomponent. Alternatively, two widely divergent paths may be taken.

It is within the scope of this invention that a silicon wafer can beused as the sacrificial substrate upon which tip structures arefabricated, and that tip structures so fabricated may be joined (e.g.,soldered, brazed) to resilient contact structures which already havebeen mounted to an electronic component. Further discussion of thesetechniques are found in FIGS. 8A-8E, hereinbelow.

As illustrated by FIG. 2G, the sacrificial substrate 254 may simply beremoved, by any suitable process such as selective chemical etching.Since most selective chemical etching processes will etch one materialat a much greater rate than an other material, and the other materialmay slightly be etched in the process, this phenomenon is advantageouslyemployed to remove the thin barrier layer of nickel in the tip structurecontemporaneously with removing the sacrificial substrate. However, ifneed be, the thin nickel barrier layer can be removed in a subsequentetch step. This results in a plurality (three of many shown) ofindividual, discrete, singulated interconnection elements 264, asindicated by the dashed line 266, which may later be mounted (such as bysoldering or brazing) to terminals on electronic components.

It bears mention that the overcoat material may also be slightly thinnedin the process of removing the sacrificial substrate and/or the thinbarrier layer. However, it is preferred that this not occur.

To prevent thinning of the overcoat, it is preferred that a thin layerof gold or, for example, approximately 10 microinches of soft goldapplied over approximately 20 microinches of hard gold, be applied as afinal layer over the overcoat material 262. Such an outer layer of goldis intended primarily for its superior conductivity, contact resistance,and solderability, and is generally highly impervious to most etchingsolutions contemplated to be used to remove the thin barrier layer andthe sacrificial substrate.

Alternatively, as illustrated by FIG. 2H, prior to removing thesacrificial substrate 254, the plurality (three of many shown) ofinterconnection elements 264 may be “fixed” in a desired spatialrelationship with one another by any suitable support structure 266,such as by a thin plate having a plurality of holes therein, whereuponthe sacrificial substrate is removed. The support structure 266 may beof a dielectric material, or of a conductive material overcoated with adielectric material. Further processing steps (not illustrated) such asmounting the plurality of interconnection elements to an electroniccomponent such as a silicon wafer or a printed circuit board may thenproceed. Additionally, in some applications, it may be desireable tostabilize the tips (opposite the tip structures) of the interconnectionelements 264 from moving, especially when contact forces are appliedthereto. To this end, it may also be desirable to constrain movement ofthe tips of the interconnection elements with a suitable sheet 268having a plurality of holes, such as a mesh formed of a dielectricmaterial.

A distinct advantage of the technique 250 described hereinabove is thattip structures (258) may be formed of virtually any desired material andhaving virtually any desired texture. As mentioned hereinabove, gold isan example of a noble metal that exhibits excellent electricalcharacteristics of electrical conductivity, low contact resistance,solderability, and resistance to corrosion. Since gold is alsomalleable, it is extremely well-suited to be a final overcoat appliedover any of the interconnection elements described herein, particularlythe resilient interconnection elements described herein. Other noblemetals exhibit similar desirable characteristics. However, certainmaterials such as rhodium which exhibit such excellent electricalcharacteristics would generally be inappropriate for overcoating anentire interconnection element. Rhodium, for example, is notablybrittle, and would not perform well as a final overcoat on a resilientinterconnection element. In this regard, techniques exemplified by thetechnique 250 readily overcome this limitation. For example, the firstlayer of a multi-layer tip structure (see 258) can be rhodium (ratherthan gold, as described hereinabove), thereby exploiting its superiorelectrical characteristics for making contact to electronic componentswithout having any impact whatsoever on the mechanical behavior of theresulting interconnection element.

FIG. 2I illustrates an alternate embodiment 270 for fabricatinginterconnection elements. In this embodiment, a masking material 272 isapplied to the surface of a sacrificial substrate 274, and is patternedto have a plurality (one of many shown) of openings 276, in a mannersimilar to the technique described hereinabove with respect to FIG. 2D.The openings 276 define areas whereat interconnection elements will befabricated as free-standing structures. (As used throughout thedescriptions set forth herein, an interconnection element is“free-standing” when is has a one end bonded to a terminal of anelectronic component or to an area of a sacrificial substrate, and theopposite end of the interconnection element is not bonded to theelectronic component or sacrificial substrate.)

The area within the opening may be textured, in any suitable manner,such as to have one or more depressions, as indicated by the singledepression 278 extending into the surface of the sacrificial substrate274.

A core (wire stem) 280 is bonded to the surface of the sacrificialsubstrate within the opening 276, and may have any suitable shape. Inthis illustration, only a one end of one interconnection element isshown, for illustrative clarity. The other end (not shown) may beattached to an electronic component. It may now readily be observed thatthe technique 270 differs from the aforementioned technique 250 in thatthe core 280, is bonded directly to the sacrificial substrate 274,rather than to a tip structure 258. By way of example, a gold wire core(280) is readily bonded, using conventional wirebonding techniques, tothe surface of an aluminum substrate (274).

In a next step of the process (270), a layer 282 of gold is applied(e.g., by plating) over the core 280 and onto the exposed area of thesubstrate 274 within the opening 276, including within the depression278. The primary purpose of this layer 282 is to form a contact surfaceat the end of the resulting interconnection element (i.e., once thesacrificial substrate is removed).

Next, a layer 284 of a relatively hard material, such as nickel, isapplied over the layer 282. As mentioned hereinabove, one primarypurpose of this layer 284 is to impart desired mechanicalcharacteristics (e.g., resiliency) to the resulting compositeinterconnection element. In this embodiment, another primary purpose ofthe layer 284 is to enhance the durability of the contact surface beingfabricated at the lower (as viewed) end of the resulting interconnectionelement. A final layer of gold (not shown) may be applied over the layer284, to enhance the electrical characteristics of the resultinginterconnection element.

In a final step, the masking material 272 and sacrificial substrate 274are removed, resulting in either a plurality of singulatedinterconnection elements (compare FIG. 2G) or in a plurality ofinterconnection elements having a predetermined spatial relationshipwith one another (compare FIG. 2H).

This embodiment 270 is exemplary of a technique for fabricating texturedcontact tips on the ends of interconnection elements. In this case, anexcellent example of a “gold over nickel” contact tip has beendescribed. It is, however, within the scope of the invention that otheranalogous contact tips could be fabricated at the ends ofinterconnection elements, according to the techniques described herein.Another feature of this embodiment 270 is that the contact tips areconstructed entirely atop the sacrificial substrate (274), rather thanwithin the surface of the sacrificial substrate (254) as contemplated bythe previous embodiment 250.

Mounting Spring Interconnect Elements

Directly to Semiconductor Devices

This is the Old 1 c . . . 1 e, from CASE-3, Edited

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are comparable to FIGS. 1C-1E of the PARENT CASE,and illustrate a preferred technique 300 for fabricating compositeinterconnections directly upon semiconductor devices, includingunsingulated semiconductor devices.

According to conventional semiconductor processing techniques, asemiconductor device 302 has a patterned conductive layer 304. Thislayer 304 may be a top metal layer, which is normally intended forbond-out to the die, as defined by openings 306 in an insulating (e.g.,passivation) layer 308 (typically nitride). In this manner, a bond padwould be defined which would have an area corresponding to the area ofthe opening 306 in the passivation layer 308. Normally (i.e., accordingto the prior art), a wire would be bonded to the bond pad.

According to the invention, a blanket layer 310 of metal material (e.g.,aluminum) is deposited (such as by sputtering) over the passivationlayer 308 in a manner that the conductive layer 310 conformally followsthe topography of the layer 308, including “dipping” into the opening306 and electrically contacting the layer 304. A patterned layer 312 ofmasking material (e.g., photoresist) is applied over the layer 310 withopenings 314 aligned over the openings 306 in the passivation layer 308.Portions of the blanket conductive layer 310 are covered by the maskingmaterial 312, other portions of the blanket conductive layer 310 areexposed (not covered) within the openings 314 of the layer of maskingmaterial 312. The exposed portions of the blanket conductive layer, 310,within the openings 314 will serve as “pads” or “terminals” (compare214), and may be gold plated (not shown).

An important feature of this technique is that the opening 314 is largerthan the opening 306. As will be evident, this will result in a largerbond area (defined by the opening 132) than is otherwise (as defined bythe opening 306) present on the semiconductor die 302.

Another important feature of this technique is that the conductive layer310 acts as a shorting layer to protect the device 302 from damageduring a process of electronic flame off (EFO) of the wire stem (core)320.

An end 320 a of an inner core (wire stem) 320 is bonded to the top (asviewed) surface of the conductive layer 310, within the opening 314. Thecore 320 is configured to extend from the surface of the semiconductordie, to have a springable shape and is severed to have a tip 320 b, inthe manner described hereinabove (e.g., by electronic flame off). Next,as shown in FIG. 3B, the shaped wire stem 320 is overcoated with one ormore layers of conductive material 322, as described hereinabove(compare FIG. 2A). In FIG. 3B it can be seen that the overcoat material322 completely envelops the wire stem 320 and also covers the conductivelayer 310 within the area defined by the opening 314 in the photoresist312.

The photoresist 312 is then removed (such as by chemical etching, orwashing), and the substrate is subjected to selective etching (e.g.,chemical etching) to remove all of the material from the conductivelayer 310 except that portion 315 (e.g., pad, terminal) of the layer 310which is covered by the material 322 overcoating the wire stem 320.Portions of the blanket conductive layer 310 previously covered by themasking material 312, and not overcoated with the material 322, areremoved in this step, while the remaining portions of the blanketconductive material 310 which have been overcoated by the material 322are not removed. This results in the structure shown in FIG. 3C, asignificant advantage of which is that the resulting compositeinterconnection element 324 is securely anchored (by the coatingmaterial 322) to an area (which was defined by the opening 314 in thephotoresist) which can easily be made to be larger than what wouldotherwise (e.g., in the prior art) be considered to be the contact areaof a bond pad (i.e., the opening 306 in the passivation layer 308).

Another important advantage of this technique is that ahermetically-sealed (completely overcoated) connection is effectedbetween the contact structure 324 and the terminal (pad) 315 to which itis mounted.

The techniques described hereinabove generally set forth a novel methodfor fabricating composite interconnection elements, the physicalcharacteristics of which are readily tailored to exhibit a desireddegree of resiliency.

Generally, the composite interconnection elements of the presentinvention are readily mounted to (or fabricated upon) a substrate(particularly a semiconductor die) in a manner in which the tips (e.g.,320 b) of the interconnection elements (e.g., 320) are readily caused tobe coplanar with one another and can be at a different (e.g., greaterpitch) than the terminals (e.g., bond pads) from which they originate.

It is within the scope of this invention that openings are made in theresist (e.g., 314) whereat resilient contact structures are not mounted.Rather, such openings could advantageously be employed to effectconnections (such as by traditional wirebonding) to other pads on thesame semiconductor die or on other semiconductor dies. This affords themanufacturer the ability to “customize” interconnections with a commonlayout of openings in the resist.

As shown in FIG. 3D, it is within the scope of this invention that themasking layer 312 can additionally be patterned, so as to leaveadditional conductive lines or areas upon the face of the semiconductordevice 302 (i.e., in addition to providing openings 314 whereat theinterconnection elements 324 are mounted and overcoated). This isillustrated in the figure by the “elongate” openings 324 a and 324 bextending to the openings 314 a and 314 b, respectively, and the “area”opening 324 c optionally (as shown) extending to the opening 314 c. (Inthis figure, elements 304, 308 and 310 are omitted, for illustrativeclarity.) As set forth hereinabove, the overcoat material 322 will bedeposited in these additional openings (324 a, 324 b; 324 c), and willprevent portions of the conductive layer 310 underlying these openingsfrom being removed. In the case of such elongated and area openings (324a, 324 b, 324 c) extending to contact openings (314 a, 314 b, 314 c),the elongated and area openings will be electrically connected tocorresponding ones of the contact structures. This is useful in thecontext of providing (routing) conductive traces between(interconnecting) two or more terminals (315) directly upon the face ofthe electronic component (e.g., semiconductor device) 302. This is alsouseful for providing ground and/or power planes directly upon theelectronic component 302. This is also useful in the context of closelyadjacent (e.g., interleaved) elongated areas (which when plated, becomelines), such as the elongated areas 324 a and 324 b, which can serve ason-chip (302) capacitors. Additionally, providing openings in themasking layer 312 at other than the locations of the contact structures324 can help uniformize deposition of the subsequent overcoat material322.

It is within the scope of this invention that the contact structures(324) are pre-fabricated, for example in the manner of FIGS. 2D-2Fdescribed hereinabove, and brazed to the terminals 315, either with orwithout tips (258) having controlled topography. This includes mountingthe pre-fabricated contact structures to unsingulated (from asemiconductor wafer) semiconductor dies on a one-by-one basis, orseveral semiconductor dies at once. Additionally, the topography of atip structure (258, 820, 864) can be controlled to be flat, to make aneffective pressure connection with a z-axis conductive adhesive (868),described hereinbelow.

Exercising Semiconductor Devices

A well-known procedure among integrated circuit (chip) manufacturers isthe burn-in and functional testing of chips. These techniques aretypically performed after packaging the chips, and are collectivelyreferred to herein as “exercising”.

Modern integrated circuits are generally produced by creating several,typically identical integrated circuit dies (usually as square orrectangular die sites) on a single (usually round) semiconductor wafer,then scribing and slicing the wafer to separate (singulate, dice) thedies (chips) from one another. An orthogonal grid of “scribe line”(kerf) areas extends between adjacent dies, and sometimes contain teststructures, for evaluating the fabrication process. These scribe linesareas, and anything contained within them, will be destroyed when thedies are singulated from the wafer. The singulated (separated) dies areultimately individually packaged, such as by making wire bondconnections between bond pads on the die and conductive traces withinthe package body.

“Burn-in” is a process whereby a chip (die) is either simply powered up(“static” burn-in), or is powered up and has signals exercising to somedegree the functionality of the chip (“dynamic” burn-in). In both cases,burn-in is typically performed at an elevated temperature and by making“temporary” (or removable) connections to the chip—the object being toidentify chips that are defective, prior to packaging the chips. Burn-inis usually performed on a die-by-die basis, after the dies aresingulated (diced) from the wafer, but it is also known to performburn-in prior to singulating the dies. Typically, the temporaryconnections to the dies are made by test probes of by “flying wires”.

Functional testing can also be accomplished by making temporaryconnections to the dies. In some instances, each die is provided withbuilt-in self test (self-starting, signal-generating) circuitry whichwill exercise some of the functionality of the chip. In many instances,a test jig must be fabricated for each die, with probe pins preciselyaligned with bond pads on the particular die required to be exercised(tested and/or burned-in). These test jigs are relatively expensive, andrequire an inordinate amount of time to fabricate.

As a general proposition, package leads are optimized for assembly, notfor burn-in (or functional testing). Prior art burn-in boards arecostly, and are often subjected to thousands of cycles (i.e., generallyone cycle per die that is tested). Moreover, different dies requiredifferent burn-in boards. Burn-in boards are expensive, which increasesthe overall cost of fabrication and which can only be amortized overlarge runs of particular devices.

Given that there has been some testing of the die prior to packaging thedie, the die is packaged in order that the packaged die can be connectedto external system components. As described hereinabove, packagingtypically involves making some sort of “permanent” connection to thedie, such as by bond wires. (Often, such “permanent” connections may beun-done and re-done, although this is not generally desirable.)

Evidently, the “temporary” connections required for burn-in and/orpre-packaging testing of the die(s) are often dissimilar from the“permanent” connections required for packaging the die (s).

It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique formaking both temporary and permanent connections to electroniccomponents, such as semiconductor dies, using the same interconnectionstructure.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a techniquefor making temporary interconnections to dies, for performing burn-inand or testing of the dies, either before the dies are singulated fromthe wafer, or after the dies are singulated from the wafer.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improvedtechnique for making temporary interconnections to dies, whether or notthe same interconnect structure is employed to make permanentconnections to the die(s).

According to the invention, resilient contact structures can serve“double duty” both as temporary and as permanent connections to anelectronic component, such as a semiconductor die.

According to the present invention, resilient contact structures can bemounted directly to semiconductor dies, and the resilient contactstructures can serve multiple purposes:

(a) the resilient contact structures can make reliable, temporarycontact to test boards, which may be as simple and straightforward asordinary printed circuit boards;

(b) the same resilient contact structures can make reliable permanentcontact to circuit boards, when held in place by a spring clip, or thelike; and

(c) the same resilient contact structures can make reliable permanentconnection to circuit boards, by soldering.

Chip-Level Mounting Process

As mentioned hereinabove (e.g., with respect to FIGS. 3A-3C), it is wellwithin the scope of this invention to mount the resilient contactstructures of the present invention directly to (on) semiconductor dies.This is particularly significant when viewed against prior arttechniques of wire bonding to dies which are disposed in some sort ofpackage requiring external interconnect structures (e.g., pins, leadsand the like). Generally, a semiconductor die is not tolerant ofsignificant imposition of heat, such as is generally required whenbrazing pins to packages, because a significant amount of heat willcause carefully laid-out diffusion areas in the die to further diffuse.This is becoming more and more of a concern as device geometries shrink(e.g., to submicron geometries). As a general proposition, for anyfabrication process (e.g., CMOS), there is a heat “budget”, and theimpact of every processing step in which the die is subjected to heat(e.g., reflow glass) must be carefully considered and accounted for.

Generally, the present invention provides a technique for mountingcontact structures directly to semiconductor dies, without significantlyheating the die. Generally, the bonding of the wire stem to the die andthe subsequent overcoating (e.g., plating) of the wire stem areperformed at temperatures which are relatively “trivial” when comparedto device fabrication processes (e.g., plasma etching, reflow glass)which subject the dies to temperatures on the order of several hundredsof degrees Celsius (° C.). For example, bonding of gold wires willtypically occur at 140-175° C. Bonding of aluminum wires can occur ateven lower temperatures, such as at room temperature. Platingtemperatures are process dependent, but generally do not involvetemperatures in excess of 100° C.

FIGS. 4A-4E illustrate the process of putting resilient contactstructures on a silicon chip, or onto silicon chips (dies) prior totheir having been singulated from a semiconductor wafer. An importantfeature of this process is the provision of a shorting layer (mentionedhereinabove with respect to the layer 310), which is important forovercoating the shaped wire stems of the resilient contact structures byelectroplating (discussed hereinabove). Inasmuch as electroplatinginvolves depositing material out of a solution in the presence of anelectric field, and the electric field could damage sensitivesemiconductor devices, as well as the fact that an electric arc (such asin electric flame-off techniques for severing the wire, as discussedhereinabove) certainly has the potential to damage semiconductordevices, the shorting layer will provide electrical protection, duringthe process, for such sensitive electronic components. Optionally, theshorting layer can also be grounded.

FIG. 4A shows a semiconductor substrate 402 having a plurality (two ofmany shown) bond pads 404. The bond pads 404 are covered by apassivation layer 406 (typically silicon nitride) which has openingsover each of the bond pads 404. Typically, these openings in thepassivation layer 406 permit a bond wire to be bonded to the bond pad,for wirebonding the substrate (e.g., die) to a leadframe or the like.For all intents and purposes, the openings in the passivation layerdefine the size (area) of the bond pad 404, irrespective of the factthat the metallization of the bond pad may (and typically will) extendbeyond the opening in the passivation layer 406. (Typically, the bondpad, per se, is simply a location in a pattern of conductors in a layerof metallization.) The preceding is well known in the art ofsemiconductor fabrication, and additional layers of conductive,insulating and semiconducting material between the bond pads (topmetallization layer) and the substrate 402 are omitted, for illustrativeclarity. Typically, but not necessarily, the bond pads are all at thesame level (e.g., if a preceding layer has been planarized) on thesemiconductor substrate (device), and it is immaterial for the purposesof the present invention whether or not the bond pads are coplanar.

FIG. 4A further shows that the bond pads 404 are shorted together by aconductive layer 410 of aluminum, Ti—W—Cu (titanium-tungsten-copper),Cr—Cu (chromium-copper), or the like, applied by conventional processesto the entire surface of the substrate 402 (over the passivation layer406 and into the openings in the passivation layer) so as to makeelectrical contact with the bond pads 404. A patterned layer of resist(photoresist) 412 is applied over the shorting layer 410, and ispatterned to have openings 414 aligned directly over the bond pads 404;Notably, the openings 414 in the resist layer 412 can be of an arbitrarysize, and are preferably larger than the openings in the passivationlayer 406 so that a “virtual” bond pad (defined by the opening 414through the resist 412 to the shorting layer 410) has a larger area thanthe “actual” bond pad 404. According to an aspect of the invention, thearea of the virtual bond pad is significantly, such as up to 10%, 20%,30%, 40, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90% or 100% larger than the actual bond pad(as defined by the opening in the passivation layer. Typically, bondpads (and their openings) are square (as viewed from above). However,the particular shape of the bond pads is not particularly germane to thepresent inventions which is applicable to bond pads having rectangular,round or oval shapes, and the like.

FIG. 4B illustrates a next step in the process of mounting resilientcontact structures to the substrate 402. Wires 420 are bonded at theirdistal ends 420 a to the shorting layer, in the openings 414, andfashioned to have a shape suitable for functioning as a resilientcontact structure when overcoated. Generally, any of the above-mentionedtechniques for fashioning, wire stem shapes can be employed in thisstep. In this example, the wire 420 is fashioned into a wire stem havinga shape similar to the shape set forth in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 4C illustrates a next step in the process of mounting resilientcontact structures to the substrate 402, wherein the wire stems (shapedwires 420) are overcoated with one (or more) layer(s) 422 of aconductive material. (As in previous examples, only the topmost layer ofmultilayer coatings are required to be conductive.) Again, any of theaforementioned processes and materials for overcoating shaped wire stemsmay be employed in this step. In this example, the wire (1420) iselectroplated (overcoated) with nickel. As in the previous examples, theovercoat is what determines the resiliency of the resulting contactstructure, and also greatly enhances the anchoring of the contactstructure to the substrate. In this example, the entire substrate issubmersed in an electroplating bath, and nickel is plated up inherentlyselectively on the wire stems and in the openings 414 of the resist 412(nickel will not electroplate to resist material). In this manner,resilient contact structures 430 are provided FIG. 4D illustrates a nextstep in the process of mounting resilient contact structures to thesubstrate 402, wherein the wire stems (1420) have been overcoated (1422)to form resilient contact structures 430. The resist 412 layer, evidentin the last three steps, has been removed. At this point in the process,the virtual bond pads are simply contact areas (compare 110) on thecontinuous shorting layer 410.

FIG. 4E illustrates a final step in the process of mounting resilientcontact structures to the substrate 402. In this step the shorting layer410 is removed at all location except under the overcoating 422. Forshorting layers formed of materials that are readily selectively etched(i.e., without etching the overcoat material 422 or the passivationmaterial 406), this can be accomplished by selective wet etching (i.e.,by selecting the appropriate etchant). The only “basic” requirement toimplement selective etching, in this example, is that the material ofthe layer 410 is different from the material of the coating 422, andthat there is a reagent which will dissolve the one (1410) withoutdissolving the other (422). This is well within the purview of onehaving ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention mostnearly pertains.

A distinct advantage of the process of the present invention is that alarger “virtual” contact area is created than otherwise existed (i.e.,in the opening of the passivation layer). The overcoat 422 firmlyanchors the wire stem 420 to this virtual contact area, greatlyincreasing the base adhesion of the wire stem. Moreover, although a diesubstrate may have square (or rectangular, or round) actual contactpads, the process of the present invention allows for the creation ofvirtual contact pads (openings in the resist 412 of any profile (e.g.,rectangular, round, oval, etc.). Moreover, it is only required that thevirtual contact pad overlap the actual contact pad. In other words, thecenter of the virtual contact pad can be offset from the center of theactual contact pad. This permits “staggering” the tips (distal ends) ofthe resilient contacts, a feature which would otherwise (if bondingdirectly to a linear array of actual contact pads) would requirefashioning at least two different wire shapes or orientations.

As mentioned hereinabove, this process of mounting resilient contactstructures (430) to a substrate can be performed on a already-singulateddie, or on dies (die sites) prior to their having been singulated from asemiconductor wafer.

The steps described hereinabove can also be performed on semiconductordies which have not been singulated from a wafer. (See FIG. 5,hereinbelow, for a discussion of mounting contact structures to diesprior to singulating the dies from the wafer.)

FIGS. 4F and 4G, discussed immediately hereinbelow, describe a processsimilar to the process of FIGS. 4A-4E, but wherein contact structuresare applied to dies prior to singulating the dies from a wafer.

FIG. 4F illustrates a post-finishing step wherein the resilient contactstructures 430 have been mounted to a plurality of die sites 402 a and402 b (two of many shown) on a semiconductor wafer. A suitable scribingor kerfing tool 450 (such as a saw) is brought to bear on the wafer,between adjacent die sites, resulting in a plurality of singulated dies,each die having resilient contact structures mounted thereto.

FIG. 4G illustrates another, optional post-finishing step, which can beperformed prior to or after (i.e., independently of) the post-finishingstep shown in FIG. 4F. In this step, a suitable hermetic (e.g., polymer)coating 460 is applied to the surface of the substrate, covering theentire surface as well as the proximal ends 430 a of the resilientcontact structures 430, as well as the edges of the substrate (asshown). Typically (i.e., preferably) such coatings are an insulatingmaterial, and covering the distal end (tip) 430 b of the resilientcontact structure 430 is to be avoided (as shown). If not avoidable,insulating material (1460) covering the tip 430 b of the resilientcontact structure must be removed. Additionally, coating any more thanan incidental (very small) portion of the length of the resilientcontact structure with the insulating material (1460) is to berigorously avoided, as the insulating material may alter the resilient(spring) characteristics of the contact structure 430 imparted thereto(largely) by the overcoat 422. This step represents an important featureof the invention in that semiconductor dies, especially the aluminumbond pads thereof, can hermetically be sealed from the environment(atmosphere). Such hermetic sealing of the die permits the use of lesshermetic (and typically less expensive) packages to be used. Forexample, ceramic packages are very hermetic (moisture proof) and veryexpensive. Plastic packages are less hermetic, and less expensive.PCB-substrate type packages tend to be even less hermetic, andcomparable in cost to plastic packages.

Wafer-Level Mounting Resilient Contact Structures

Discussions set forth hereinabove have generally emphasized mounting theresilient contact structures of the present invention to discretesubstrates, including to semiconductor dies. The present invention is ofbroader scope, and is especially advantageous for mounting the resilientcontact structures of the present invention to dies, prior tosingulating (dicing) the dies from a wafer. This affords the opportunityto perform testing and burn-in of unsingulated dies prior to dicing themfrom the wafer, using the resilient interconnection techniques of thepresent invention. The mounting of contact structures to unsingulateddies has been briefly discussed hereinabove, with respect to FIGS. 4Fand 4G.

Generally, in the prior art, testing unsingulated dies at wafer-levelrequired some sort of die selection techniques, whether electrical(e.g., die selection mechanism built into the wafer and/or dies) ormechanical (e.g., probes, flying wires, and the like), both of whichtends to be complex and add a significant increment to the cost ofproduction. The opportunity, according to the present invention, toconstruct “final” contact structures on unsingulated dies, and to usethese contact structures both for testing and permanently connecting thedies, avoids these intermediate steps, and will also tend to be moreeconomical than test-after-dice methodologies.

Additionally, during the fabrication of dies on a wafer, it is often thecase that imperfections in the wafer will be identified prior to waferprocessing. Any dies fabricated at such imperfect die sites shouldimmediately be discarded (after dicing), without even “bothering” totest these dies.

FIG. 5 illustrates a portion 502 of a semiconductor wafer, illustratinga plurality of die sites 504 a . . . 504 o defined by a grid of kerf(scribe) lines 506. Resilient contact structures 530 have been mountedto bond pads (not shown) on each of die sites 504 a . . . 504 d and 504f . . . 504 o. Resilient contact structures (530) are not mounted to thedie site 504 e (which may have been determined, prior to mounting theresilient contact structures, to be defective). As shown in this figure,all of the resilient contact structures on a die site are “oriented” sono portion of the resilient contact structure occupies a positiondirectly above a kerf line 506.

After singulating the dies from the wafer, they can be coated (orencapsulated) with a suitable insulating material, leaving the tips ofthe resilient contact structures exposed for subsequent interconnect toa board or to a card.

Generally, the ability to fabricate resilient contact structuresdirectly on semiconductor dies, prior to singulating the dies from awafer, represents a tremendous advantage in the overall process ofmanufacturing semiconductor devices. This can be exemplified by thefollowing:

In a typical process flow of the prior art, dies are probed while on thewafer, then are diced from the wafer, then are mounted to a die attachpad on a leadframe, then are wirebonded to fingers of the leadframe,then the assembly of die and leadframe are inserted into a mold forencapsulation, and the resulting packaged die is removed from the mold,trimmed (e.g., of “flash”) and formed (e.g., the portions of theleadframe fingers extending from the package body are formed intosuitable gull-wing configurations or the like.

In a typical process flow of the present invention, dies are probedwhile on the wafer, resilient contact structures are mounted to the“good” (passed) dies, the dies are diced from the wafer, then the diesare coated or encapsulated. As a general proposition, it is preferredthat probing dies in the manner described hereinabove be limited to dieshaving fewer than one hundred bond pads to be probed, such as memorydevices. Nevertheless, probing dies at the wafer level (prior tosingulation), especially for purposes of burn-in, is greatly facilitatedby the disclosed process.

In FIG. 5, the resilient contact structures 530 on any are disposed ontwo sides of a die, and the resilient contact structures on any one sideof the die are illustrated as all being shaped the same and oriented inthe same direction. This establishes a “pitch”, or spacing between tipsof adjacent resilient contact structures which, as is evident, will bethe same as the pitch of the bond pads to which the resilient contactstructures are mounted.

This illustrates an advantage of the invention, in that resilientcontact structures, suitable for connecting directly to a printedcircuit board or the like, can be mounted directly to semiconductor(e.g., silicon) devices, to form a “chip size package”.

Such a device, with resilient contact structures mounted directlythereto is ready for test and burn-in, and ready for interconnecting toa card or a board, as discussed, for example, with respect to FIGS. 7Aand 7B, in greater detail hereinbelow.

For purposes of this discussion, it is assumed that a givensemiconductor device will have a lower limit on how close bond pads canbe disposed, especially a single row of bond pads, and that this lowerlimit establishes a pitch for what is termed herein the “pin-out” of thedevice. (It is understood that the term “pin-out” is typically used todescribe the signal assignments of bond pads rather than their physicalspacing.) This pin-out pitch tends to be relatively fine (small), ascompared with pad spacing which can feasibly be achieved on printedcircuit boards, which partially accounts for the general acceptance ofusing bond wires, lead frames, and the like, in the context of packagingdies, to amplify (spread) the pin-out pitch.

Generally, a critical constraint on board design is that contact(solder) pads must be spaced far enough apart so that, in some cases,conductive traces can pass therebetween to effect “complex”interconnection schemes. Moreover, as a general proposition, the largerthe solder pad, the better, as it will “accept” more solder—making for amore reliable solder connection.

According to a feature of the invention, resilient contact structureshaving various shapes and orientations can be mounted to substrates(e.g., semiconductor dies), which is useful in increasing the effectivepitch of the device pin-out.

Moreover, it is possible, when mounting resilient contact structures tosingulated dies, it is a relatively straightforward matter to shape thecontacts so that they extend beyond the perimeter of the die. Generally,when mounting resilient contact structures to electronic components,according to the present invention, the shape and extent of the wirestem (which will be overcoated) is virtually unconstrained, readilyallowing for fan-out (increasing from a relatively small spacing, suchas on a die, to relatively larger spacing, such as on a printed circuitboard).

It is, however, within the scope of this invention that contactstructures extending beyond the perimeter of a die can be mounted tounsingulated dies on a wafer. This would require, for example, sawingthe wafer from the opposite side, since such contact structures wouldoverlie the kerf lines.

Another advantage of the present invention is that, when the wire stemis plated (overcoated), the overcoat material can be permitted to buildup in areas of the electronic component which are not specificallyintended for making interconnections. For example, the edges of theelectronic component could be plated while plating wire stems mounted tothe face of the electronic component. Or, the opposite side of theelectronic component can be plated while plating the wire stems.Generally, any area on the electronic component which is not masked willbe plated. (In many of the embodiments described hereinabove, thecontact area (e.g., 110) where the wire stem is bonded to the electroniccomponent is defined by an opening in photoresist, or the like.)

FIG. 5A illustrates an embodiment of the invention wherein theorientation of contact structures is staggered to increase theireffective density, and is similar to FIG. 24 of CASE-2. The figureillustrates a semiconductor die 520 atop which a plurality of dissimilarcontact structures have been mounted, according to the techniques setforth above. A “first portion 522 of the contact structures areconfigured (shaped, bent) to have a relatively large offset (i.e.,distal end from the proximal end). A second portion 524 of the contactstructures are configured (shaped, bent) to have a relatively smalloffset (i.e., distal end from the proximal end). In this manner, asillustrated, the spacing between the proximal ends of adjacent contactstructures (522 and 524) is “m”, and the spacing between the distal endsof adjacent contact structures is “n”, where n>m. For example, “m” isapproximately five mils, and “n” is five-to-ten mils. As further shownin the figure, straight contact structures 528 extending normal to thesurface of the electronic component 520 can be formed on the electroniccomponent. These contact structures 528 are intended to function asalignment pins which will mate with corresponding alignment features(such as holes) on another electronic component such as a printedcircuit board (PCB). Preferably, these alignment pins 528 are notresilient, but they may certainly be fabricated in the same processsteps as the resilient contact structures 522 and 524.

Optionally, an encapsulant can be disposed on the surface of thesubstrate, encompassing the lower (as viewed) portions of the contactstructures, mechanically reinforcing the attachment of the resilientcontact structures to the surface of the substrate.

The staggering of the tips of the contact structures, according to thepresent invention, allows the designer to relax the “ground rules”(design rules) for a board to which the electronic component will bemounted, allowing for contact (soldering) pads disposed further from oneanother and/or larger individual soldering pads.

In use, temporary connections can be made to the electronic component520 via the contact structures (522, 524 526), and subsequent permanentconnections can be made to the electronic component 520 via the samecontact structures (522, 524 526), in the manner discussed hereinabovewith respect to FIGS. 7A and 7B (described hereinbelow). Thisfacilitates wafer-level exercising (testing and burning-in) ofun-singulated dies on a wafer, if desired, a feature which isparticularly advantageous for semiconductor memory devices (but notlimited thereto). It is within the scope of this invention that thecontact structures 522, 524, 526 and 528 are gang-transferred to thewafer (or chip) 520, in the manner set forth hereinabove. Thegang-transfer technique generally avoids the need to form a shortinglayer (compare 126) on the electronic component, since the contactstructures are fabricated “off-line” (i.e., on a sacrificial substrate).

No Shorting Layer Required

In a number of the embodiments described hereinabove, the use of ashorting layer has been described (see, e.g., conductive layer 310 inFIGS. 3A-3C). A shorting layer is useful when overcoating the wire stemsby electroplating processes. The use of a conductive sacrificialstructure, to which all of the wire stems are connected, alsofacilitates electroplating, by similarly shorting out (electricallyconnecting together) a plurality of wire stems.

FIG. 6A illustrates a first step in a process, wherein a sacrificialstructure 602 is used in connection with shaping and overcoating aplurality of wire stems 630 and 632 mounted (bonded) to a semiconductordie 612.

The sacrificial structure 602 is formed as a cage-like structure, from aconductive (and readily removed, in a final step of the process)material, such as aluminum, and includes an outer ring 604 defining anarea into which the die 612 is disposed, and a cross-bar 606 spanningfrom one side of the ring, 604 (as shown) to an opposite side (notvisible in this cross-sectional perspective drawing) of the ring 604.This results in their being openings 608 and 610 spanning from the oneside of the ring to the opposite side of the ring, parallel to thecross-bar 606 (and to one another).

Generally, the sacrificial structure (cage) is positioned over thesemiconductor die 612, so that the openings 608 and 610 are aligned withrespective parallel rows of bond pads on the die 612, prior to mountingthe wire stems 630 and 632 to the die 612.

As shown, the wire stems in each row of bond pads along a respectiveside of the die extend alternately to the outer ring 604 and the innercross-bar 606, and are bonded to the sacrificial structure, such as byhaving their distal ends wedge-bonded thereto. In this manner, thesacrificial structure 602 shorts all of the wire stems together, and isreadily connected to (not shown) for subsequent plating of the wirestems.

FIG. 6B shows a next step in the process, wherein the wire stems 630 and632 are plated, in the manner described hereinabove, to function asresilient contact structures 640 and 642, respectively.

In the next step, it is desired to remove (eliminate) the sacrificialstructure, and there are generally two possibilities: (i) the distalends of the resilient contact structures can be severed (cut) from thesacrificial structure, or (ii) the sacrificial structure can bedissolved (e.g., etched) away without severing the tips of the resilientcontact structure.

FIG. 6C shows the first possibility, wherein the sacrificial structure(602) has been dissolved away, leaving the die 612 with the resilientcontact structures 640 and 642 mounted thereto. Whereas in most of theprevious embodiments, it was generally intended that the extreme distalends of the resilient contact structures make contact with anothercomponent, in this embodiment the resilient contact structures 640 and642 are shaped so that an intermediate portion 640 c and 642 c of thecontact structures 640 and 642, respectively, make contact (as indicatedby the arrows labelled “C”) to another component (not shown).

Generally, by alternating the orientation of the contact structures 640(pointing in towards the interior of the die surface) and 642 (pointingout towards the exterior of the die), the effective pitch of the contactstructures can be larger than the pin-out pitch of the die. (CompareFIG. 5A). Vis-a-vis the interior-pointing contact structures 640, thereis a gap between their tips 640 b and the surface of the die, in amanner akin to the embodiment shown and described with respect to FIGS.8A-8C of the PARENT CASE, which allows for deflection of the resilientcontact structure without its tip contacting the surface of thesemiconductor die. Vis-a-vis the exterior-pointing contact structures642, their tips 642 b are off the edge of the die 612, presenting nosuch apparent problem (i.e., the tip of the contact structure touchingthe surface of the die, in response to contact forces).

Throughout FIGS. 6A-6C, the die 612 is shown with a passivation layer614 on its top (as viewed) surface, in the manner described hereinabove.

FIG. 6D illustrates an alternate sequence of events, wherein thesacrificial structure 602 is removed prior to overcoating the wire stems630 and 632. The first step, described with respect to FIG. 6A wouldremain the same, and a resulting structure would be as illustrated inFIG. 6C.

The technique described hereinabove with respect to FIGS. 6A-6C can beperformed at wafer-level, simply by providing a thinner sacrificialstructure (602) which simply sits atop the wafer (rather than extendingbelow the side edges of individual dies, as illustrated in FIGS. 6A-6C).

It is within the scope of this invention that the electronic component(612) is “freed” from the sacrificial structure (602) simply by cuttingthe contact structures (e.g., of FIG. 6B) or the wire stems (e.g., ofFIG. 6D).

A general advantage of using a sacrificial structure (e.g., 602) is thatno electronic flame-off is required, which otherwise would subject theelectronic component (612) to extremely high and potentially-damagingvoltages (e.g., 2000 volts).

It is also within the scope of this invention that the contactstructures (or wire stems) can stabilized, such as with a hard waxmaterial (or with a suitable casting material, such asthermally-meltable, solution-soluble polymer), and subjected to grinding(polishing) in a plane parallel to the plane of the electroniccomponent, which will result in the contact portion (e.g., 642 c)becoming the free end of the contact structure (e.g., by polishingcompletely through the contact structure or wire stem). This isdescribed hereinbelow, for example, with respect to FIG. 8C.

When using any of the “mechanical” severing techniques described herein,not only are problems associated with the high voltage of spark-severingavoided, but the height of the resulting contact structures is assured,in a direct, physical, straightforward manner.

Using Contacts Mounted on Semiconductor Devices Both for Exercising andPackaging the Devices

An important feature of the present invention is that by mountingresilient contact structures (composite interconnection elements)directly to bond pads on semiconductor dies, prior to their beingsingulated (separated) from a wafer, the same resilient contactstructures can be used to exercise (test and/or burn-in) thesemiconductor devices and to package the semiconductor devices (afterthey have been singulated).

FIG. 7A illustrates a plurality (two of many shown) of semiconductordevices (dies) 702 and 704 prior to singulating the devices from asemiconductor wafer. A boundary between the two devices is indicated bythe notch 706. (The notch may or may not actually exist, and representsthe position of a kerf (line) where the wafer will be sawed to singulatethe devices.)

A plurality (two of many shown, on each device 702 and 704,respectively) of resilient contact structures 708 (compare 430) aredirectly mounted to the devices 702 and 704, respectively, in the mannerdescribed hereinabove, for example, with respect to FIGS. 3A-3C and4A-4G.

A test board 710 having a plurality (four of many shown) of contact pads(terminals) 712 is brought to bear against the wafer, or vice-versa, sothat each of the contact pads effects a pressure connection with acorresponding one of the resilient contact structures. In this manner, atechnique is provided for performing “socketless” test and burn-in ofunsingulated semiconductor devices.

The test card 710 can be as straightforward (e.g., readily andinexpensively manufactured) printed circuit board (PCB) having aplurality of pads 712 disposed on its top (as viewed) surface.

The wafer (devices 702, 704 and additional devices) are aligned with thecard 710, using any suitable alignment means (such as locating pins, notshown) so that each resilient contact structure 708 bears upon acorresponding pad 712. This effects a resilient, “temporary” connectionbetween the card 710 and the electronic components 702 and 704. The card710 may be provided with edge connectors or the like (not shown) andoptionally with built-in test circuitry (not shown), so that test andburn-in of the component is readily performed.

Among the advantages of this technique are that a “special” probe cardhaving its own resilient probe elements is not required, and need not beconstructed in order to perform these testing (and burn-in) operations.

An important advantage accruing to the technique illustrated in FIG. 7Ais that the resilient contact structures 708 each stand on their own(disassociated from one another), and can be fabricated to extend to asignificant distance from the surface of the die (702, 704). This isimportant, in that it provides an appreciable “dead space” both betweenthe resilient contact structures and between the opposing surfaces ofthe die (e.g., 702) and the test card 710. This dead space 714 isexemplified by and is illustrated in dashed lines between the opposingsurfaces of the die 702 and the test card 710. In many semiconductorapplications, it is beneficial to provide decoupling capacitors as closeto interconnections as possible. According to the present invention,there is ample space for decoupling capacitors (not shown) to be locatedin the otherwise “dead space” 714. Such decoupling capacitors can bemounted to either the semiconductor die (702) or to the test card.

FIG. 7B illustrates that the same resilient contact structures 708 thatwere used for socketless test and burn-in of the unsingulatedsemiconductor devices (e.g., 702) can subsequently advantageously beemployed, without modification, to effect a “permanent”, connectionbetween the electronic component 702 and an interconnection substrate(system board) 720, or the like. The substrate 720 is provided with aplurality of contact pads 722 aligned, on a one-for-one basis, with thetips of the resilient contact structures 708 on the component 702. Apermanent connection between component 702 and the substrate 720 can beaccomplished (i) by applying “permanent” pressure to the component 702,via spring clips and the like (not shown), to bias the component againstthe substrate, or (ii) by soldering the component 702 to the substrate720.

As shown, the resilient contact structures 708 are soldered to the pads722 on the substrate 720. This is readily accomplished by preparing eachpad with a quantity of solder (e.g., solder paste), urging the component302 against the substrate, and running the assembly through a furnace,for reflowing (thermally cycling) the solder. The reflowed solder isillustrated in FIG. 7B as solder fillets 724.

In a manner similar to that shown with respect to FIG. 7B, there is anappreciable dead space (714) between the resilient contact structuresand between the opposing surfaces of the die 702 and the wiringsubstrate 720 whereat decoupling capacitors and the like can bedisposed.

The inventive technique of using the same resilient contact structures(728) for making both temporary and permanent connections to anelectronic component is especially beneficial in the context ofresilient contact structures mounted to active semiconductor devices(i.e., bare, unpackaged dies).

Another benefit of the inventive technique shown and described withrespect to FIGS. 7A and 7B is that for both the test card (710) and thewiring substrate (720), the layout of terminals (712, 722) isessentially the same, “mirroring” the layout of the bond pads (i.e., theresilient contact structures 708) on the semiconductor die. (Vis-a-visthe test card 710, this “sameness” applies on a per-die basis, and isreplicated when the test card is sized to exercise multiple unsingulateddies.) In practical terms, this means that the same general “design”(terminal layout) can be applied to both the test card and the wiringsubstrate, thereby obviating the need to have one design for a probecard and another design for the wiring substrate.

It is within the scope of this invention that tip structures, such asthe tip structures 820 described hereinbelow, can be mounted to the tipsof the resilient contact structures 708, including prior to excising theunsingulated semiconductor dies 702 and 704.

Packaging Flow

The concept of mounting composite interconnection elements (wire stemshaving at least one layer of a conductive, metallic coating) tosemiconductor devices, at wafer-level, and re-using the sameinterconnection elements for both testing/burn-in (temporary connection)and for final packaging (permanent connection) of the semiconductordevices was first mentioned in the aforementioned commonly-owned U.S.patent application Ser. No. 08/152,812, and was further elaborated uponin the aforementioned commonly-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/340,144 (including corresponding PCT/US94/13373). For example, asdescribed in the latter:

“it [is] possible to mount contacts on devices in either wafer orsingulated form.”

“it is possible to make contact to the semiconductor devices in thewafer prior to die cutting [the] wafer.”

“the processes . . . can be utilized with semiconductor devices in waferform as well as with single semiconductor devices.”,

“ . . . capable of being tested at its full functional speed byyieldably urging the tips of the contact structures . . . intocompressive engagement with matching contact terminals provided on atest substrate . . . ”

“ . . . can also be used for burn-in testing of the semiconductordevice.”

“By use of resilient contact structures carried by semiconductor devices. . . and using the same to make yieldable and disengageable contactswith contact pads carried by test and burn-in substrates, testing andburn-in can readily be accomplished . . . thereby avoiding the need forfirst level semiconductor packaging.”

FIG. 7C illustrates an exemplary path 740 that a semiconductor devicefollows from its fabrication on a semiconductor wafer to final assembly(packaging), according to the prior art. As illustrated by the step 742(“WAFER FAB”), a plurality of semiconductor devices are fabricated on asemiconductor wafer. Next, in a step 744 (“WAFER PROBE/MAP”) thesemiconductor devices on the wafer are probed, and a “map” is created toindicate which semiconductor devices have successfully been fabricated,and which semiconductor devices have failed to be successfullyfabricated. Next, in a step 746 (“WAFER SAW”) the wafer is sawed tosingulate the semiconductor devices, and the good dies are set aside forpackaging and further testing. The steps 744 and 746, offset by dashedlines, comprise the wafer processing phase of the overall process flow.

Next, the successfully fabricated dies are packaged, such as byattaching (“DIE ATTACH”; step 748) the dies to a paddle of a leadframe,wirebonding (“WIRE BOND”; step 750) bond pads on the dies to leadframefingers, overmolding (“OVERMOLD”; step 752) the die and leadframe (e.g.,with plastic molding compound), optionally solder plating (“SOLDERPLATE”; step 754) external (to the package body) exposed portions of theleadframe fingers, trimming (“dejunking”) excess molding compound(“flash”) and forming (e.g., gullwings, J-leads) the external portionsof the leadframe fingers (“TRIM & FORM”; step 756), placing the packageddies in a tray pack (“TRAY PACK”; step 758) which can withstand therelatively high temperatures of a burn-in furnace, performing burn-in(“BURN-IN”; step 760), and further testing (“SPEED SORT”; step 762) thepackaged semiconductor devices to sort the devices according toprescribed criteria (e.g., performance specifications, such as operatingspeed). (At the completion of the step 762, feedback can be provided tothe wafer fab 742.) These steps 744 . . . 762 are illustrative of a chippackaging phase of the overall process flow. In a final step (“SMT CARDASSEMBLY”; step 764), the packaged, sorted semiconductor device ismounted (such as by surface mount (SMT) to a wiring substrate (card).The same steps would generally apply to semiconductor devices packagedwithout leadframes (e.g., ball grid array packages).

The process of burning-in a semiconductor device involves powering upthe device at an elevated temperature. Evidently, the materials of thepackage (e.g., plastic) impose constraints upon the temperatures towhich the packaged semiconductor device can be exposed in a burn-infurnace. A common burn-in regime involves heating the packagedsemiconductor device to a temperature of 125° C. for a period of 168hours. As discussed hereinbelow, a benefit of the present invention isthat semiconductor devices can be burned in at temperatures greater than125° C., such as at 150° C. and equivalent results will accrue in a muchshorter amount of time, such as in 3 minutes (versus 168 hours).

Certain concerns arise when performing burn-in on already-packagedsemiconductor devices. Very few packages can tolerate prolonged exposureto high temperatures, especially when non-metallic or non-ceramicmaterials are included in the packaging.

FIG. 7D illustrates an exemplary path 780 that a semiconductor devicefollows from its fabrication on a semiconductor wafer to final assembly(packaging), according to the present invention. As illustrated by thestep 782 (“WAFER FAB”; compare 742), a plurality of semiconductordevices are fabricated on a semiconductor wafer.

In a next step 784 (“WAFER PROBE/MAP”; compare 744) the semiconductordevices on the wafer may be probed, and a “map” created to identifywhich semiconductor devices have successfully been fabricated, and whichsemiconductor devices have failed to be successfully fabricated. (Asdiscussed hereinbelow, this step 784 could be omitted, or performedlater in the process flow.)

In a next step 786 (“SPUTTER/RESIST/PAD PLATE”), the wafer is processed,for example by sputtering a blanket conductive layer, applying andpatterning a masking material such as photoresist, performing pad(terminal) plating, and the like, as described hereinabove, inpreparation for mounting resilient contacts thereto (see FIGS. 3A-3C).Optionally, the step 784 could be performed after the step 786.

In a next step 788 (“SPRING ATTACH)”, the aforementioned core portions(compare 112; 122, 132, 142, 152, 216, 320; also referred to as “wirestems”) of the resilient contact structures (composite interconnectionelements) are attached to the pads (terminals). This may be done on onlythose dies that have passed the initial wafer probing (step 784).Alternatively, even those dies that failed in initial wafer probing(step 784) can have core portions attached thereto, to uniformizesubsequent overcoating (step 790, described hereinafter).

In a next step 790 (“SPRING DEPOSIT/STRIP”), the overcoat material isapplied over the cores, and the masking material (photoresist) andportions of the blanket conductive layer underlying the masking materialare removed (see FIGS. 3A-3C) Optionally, the step 784 could beperformed after the step 786.

Next, in a step 792 (“HOT CHUCK BURN-IN”), the unpackaged semiconductordevices are burned-in. Power is provided to the unsingulatedsemiconductor devices by making pressure connections to the resilientcontact structures (composite interconnection elements) mounted to theunsingulated semiconductor devices.

Preferably, the burn-in step 792 is performed at a temperature of atleast 150° C. Since the semiconductor device is not yet packaged, andsince the composite interconnection elements mounted to thesemiconductor devices are entirely metallic, at this stage of theprocess, it is possible to subject the semiconductor device totemperatures that would otherwise be destructive of packagedsemiconductor devices (compare step 760) which include materials whichcannot sustain such elevated temperatures. Burn-in can be performed uponall of the wafer-resident (un-singulated) semiconductor devices, or uponselected portions of the wafer-resident semiconductor devices.

According to an aspect of the invention, unpackaged semiconductordevices can be burned in at temperatures greater than 125° C., such asat least 150° C. (including at least 175° C. and at least 200° C.) andsatisfactory results will be obtained in a matter of several (e.g., 3)minutes, rather than several (e.g., 168) hours. Evidently, the quickerthat burn-in can be performed, the shorter the overall process time willbe and commensurate cost savings will accrue. The use of higher burn-intemperatures is facilitated by the fact that the compositeinterconnection elements of the present invention are metallicstructures. According to this feature of the invention, satisfactoryburn-in can be performed in less, than 60 minutes, including less than30 minutes and less than 10 minutes.

Next, in a step 794 (“SPEED SORT”; compare 762), the unpackagedsemiconductor devices are tested to sort the devices according toprescribed criteria (e.g., performance specifications). This can beperformed on one unsingulated die at a time (testing a plurality ofunsingulated dies in sequence), or can be performed on more than one dieat a time. At the completion of this step, feedback can be provided(e.g., yield problems reported) to the wafer fab 782. If high yield isobserved in this step 796, it may be desired to omit the probing step784 entirely.

Next, in a step 796 (“WAFER SAW”; compare 746), the semiconductordevices are singulated (separated) from the wafer.

These steps 784 . . . 796 are illustrative of a chip packaging phase ofthe overall process flow (methodology) of the present invention.

In a final step 798 (“SMT CARD ASSEMBLY”; compare step 764), theunpackaged, sorted semiconductor device is finally assembled, such as bysurface mount (SMT) to a wiring substrate (card).

Pre-Fabricating Tip Structures, Processing Composite InterconnectionElements, and Joining the Tip Structures to the Interconnection Elements

FIGS. 2D-2F, discussed hereinabove, disclose a technique for fabricatingtip structures (258) on a sacrificial substrate (254), and fabricatingcomposite interconnection elements 264 on the tip structures (258) forsubsequent mounting to terminals of an electronic component.

FIG. 8A illustrates an alternate technique 800 for fabricating compositeinterconnection elements having pre-fabricated tip structures brazed(e.g.) thereto, and is particularly useful in the context of resilientcontact structures residing on semiconductor devices.

In this example, a silicon substrate (wafer) 802 having a top (asviewed) surface is used as the sacrificial substrate. A layer 804 oftitanium is deposited (e.g., by sputtering) onto the top surface of thesilicon substrate 802, and has a thickness of approximately 250 Å (1Å=0.1 nm=10⁻¹⁰ m). A layer 806 of aluminum is deposited (e.g., bysputtering) atop the titanium layer 804, and has a thickness ofapproximately 10,000 Å. The titanium layer 804 is optional and serves asan adhesion layer for the aluminum layer 806. A layer 808 of copper isdeposited (e.g., by sputtering) atop the aluminum layer 806, and has athickness of approximately 5,000 Å. A layer 810 of masking material(e.g., photoresist) is deposited atop the copper layer 808, and has athickness of approximately 2 mils. The masking layer 810 is processed inany suitable manner to have a plurality (three of many shown) of holes812 extending through the photoresist layer 810 to the underlying copperlayer 808. For example, each hole 812 may be 6 mils in diameter, and theholes 812 may be arranged at a pitch (center-to-center) of 10 mils. Thesacrificial substrate 802 has, in this manner, been prepared forfabricating a plurality of multi-layer contact tips within the holes812, as follows:

A layer 814 of nickel is deposited, such as by plating, onto the copperlayer 808, and has a thickness of approximately 1.0-1.5 mils.Optionally, a thin layer (not shown) of a noble metal such as rhodiumcan be deposited onto the copper layer prior to depositing the nickel.Next, a layer 816 of gold is deposited, such as by plating, onto thenickel 814. The multi-layer structure of nickel and aluminum (and,optionally, rhodium) will serve as a fabricated tip structure (820, asshown in FIG. 8B).

Next, as illustrated in FIG. 8B, the photoresist 810 is stripped away(using any suitable solvent), leaving a plurality of fabricated tipstructures 820 sitting atop the copper layer 808. Next, the copper (808)is subjected to a quick etch process, thereby exposing the aluminumlayer 806. As will be evident, aluminum is useful in subsequent stepssince it is substantially non-wettable with respect to solder and brazematerials.

It bears mention that it is preferred to pattern the photoresist withadditional holes within which “ersatz” tip structures 822 may befabricated in the same process steps employed to fabricate the tipstructures 820. These ersatz tip structures 822 will serve to uniformizethe aforementioned plating steps in a manner that is well known andunderstood, by reducing abrupt gradients (non-uniformities) frommanifesting themselves across the surface being plated. Such structures(822) are known in the field of plating as “robbers”.

Next, solder or brazing paste (“joining material”) 824 is deposited ontothe top (as viewed) surfaces of the tip structures 820. (There is noneed to deposit the paste onto the tops of the ersatz tip structures822). This is implemented in any suitable manner, such as with astainless steel screen or stencil. A typical paste (joining material)824 would contain gold-tin alloy (in a flux matrix) exhibiting, forexample, 1 mil spheres (balls).

The tip structures 820 are now ready to be mounted (e.g., brazed) toends (tips) of resilient contact structures, preferably the compositeinterconnect elements of the present invention. However, it is preferredthat the composite interconnect elements first be specially “prepared”to receive the tip structures 820.

FIG. 8C illustrates a technique 850 for preparing one 830 of a pluralityof unsingulated semiconductor devices with a plurality (two of manyshown) of composite interconnection elements 832 (compare 324) inanticipation of tip structures (820) being mounted to the ends of thecomposite interconnection elements 832. The composite interconnectionselements 832 are shown in full (rather than in cross section).

In this example, the composite interconnection elements 832 aremultilayer (compare FIG. 2A) and have a gold (wire) core overcoated witha layer (not shown) of copper and further overcoated with a layer (notshown) of nickel (preferably a nickel-cobalt alloy having proportions90:10 of Ni:Co), and further overcoated with a layer (not shown) ofcopper. As will be evident, it is preferred that the nickel layer bedeposited to only a substantial portion (e.g., 80%) of its desired finalthickness, the remaining small portion (e.g., 20%) of the nickelthickness being deposited in a subsequent step, described hereinbelow.

In this example, the semiconductor die 830 is provided with a plurality(two of many shown) of pillar-like structures 834 extending from its top(as viewed) surface which, as will be evident, will function aspolishing “stops”. It is not necessary to have a large number of thesepolishing stops.

The semiconductor device(s) 830 are then “cast” with a suitable castingmaterial 836, such as thermally-meltable, solution-soluble polymer,which serves to support the composite interconnection elements 832extending from the top surface of the semiconductor device(s). The top(as viewed) surface of the overmolded semiconductor device(s) is thensubjected to polishing, such as with a polishing wheel 838 which isurged down (as viewed) onto the top surface of the casting material. Theaforementioned polishing stops 834 determine the final position of thepolishing wheel, as indicated by the dashed line labelled “P”. In thismanner, the tips (top ends, as viewed) of the composite interconnectionelements 832 are polished to be substantially perfectly coplanar withone another.

It is generally advantageous that the tops of the resilient contactstructures are coplanar, to ensure that reliable pressure connectionsare made with either a test card (e.g., 710) or with a wiring substrate(720). Certainly, starting with tips which have been planarized bypolishing (or by any other suitable means) will contribute to achievingthis important objective.

After having planarized the tips of the resilient contact structures bypolishing, the casting material 836 is removed with a suitable solvent.(The polishing stops 834 will be removed at this time.) Castingmaterials are well known, as are their solvents. It is within the scopeof this invention that casting materials such as wax, which can simplybe melted away, can be used to support the interconnection elements(832) for polishing. The semiconductor device(s) has (have), in thismanner, been prepared to receive the aforementioned tip structures(820).

A beneficial side effect of the polishing operation is that the materialovercoating the gold wire stem (core) of the composite interconnectionelement 832 will be removed at the tip, leaving the gold core exposed.Inasmuch as it is desired to braze tip structures (820) to the tips ofthe composite interconnection elements, having exposed gold material tobraze to is desireable.

That having been said, it is preferred to further “prepare” thecomposite interconnection elements for receiving the tip structures byfirst performing one additional plating step—namely, nickel plating thecomposite interconnection elements 832 to provide the compositeinterconnection elements with the aforementioned remaining small portion(e.g., 20%) of their desired, overall nickel thickness.

The prepared substrate shown in FIG. 8B is now brought to bear upon theprepared semiconductor device(s). As shown in FIG. 8D, the tipstructures 820 (only two tip structures are shown in the view of FIG.8D, for illustrative clarity) are aligned with the tips of the compositeinterconnection elements 832, using standard flip-chip techniques (e.g.,split prism), and the assembly is passed through a brazing furnace toreflow the joining material 824, thereby joining (e.g., brazing) theprefabricated tip structures 820 to the ends of the contact structures832.

It is within the scope of this invention that this technique can be usedto join (e.g., braze) pre-fabricated tip structures to ends ofnon-resilient contact structures, resilient contact structures,composite interconnection elements, and the like.

During the reflow process, the exposed aluminum layer (806), beingnon-wettable, prevents solder (i.e., braze) from flowing between the tipstructures 820, i.e., prevents solder bridges from forming betweenadjacent tip structures. In addition to this anti-wetting function ofthe aluminum layer, the aluminum layer also serves as a release layer.Using a suitable etchant, the aluminum is preferentially (to the othermaterials of the assembly) etched away, and the silicon substrate 802simply “pops” off, resulting in a semiconductor device having compositeinterconnection elements each having a prefabricated tip structure, asillustrated in FIG. 8E. (Note that the joining material 824 has reflowedas “fillets” on end portions of the interconnection elements 832.) In afinal step of the process, the residual copper (808) is etched away,leaving the tip structure 820 with nickel (or rhodium, as discussedhereinabove) exposed for making contact to terminals of anotherelectronic component (e.g., 710 or 720).

It is within the scope of this invention, but it is generally notpreferred, that composite interconnection elements (such as 832) canfirst be fabricated on the tip structures themselves, in the “spirit” ofthe technique described with respect to FIGS. 2D-2F, utilizing the tipstructure metallurgy described with respect to FIG. 8A, and subsequentlymounted to the semiconductor device(s).

It is within the scope of the invention that the brazing (soldering)paste 824 is omitted, and in its stead, a layer of eutectic material(e.g., gold-tin) is plated onto the resilient contact structures priorto mounting the contact tips (820) thereto.

Using any of the techniques described hereinabove for forming contacttips at the ends of resilient contact structures is particularly usefulin the context of making pressure connections via the intermediary of az-axis conducting adhesive. The use of such adhesives is becomingcommon, for example, in mounting active devices to liquid crystaldisplay (LCD) panels.

As described hereinabove, the distal end (tip) of the contact structurecan be provided with a topological contact pad, or the like. It is, forexample, within the scope of this invention that the tips of the contactstructures can be provided with flat tabs (pressure plates). In thismanner, interconnections to external components are readily made(without soldering or the like), especially to fragile externalcomponents, through the intermediary of what is termed “z-axisconducting adhesive”, which is a known material having conductive (e.g.,gold) particles disposed therein and which becomes conductive undercompression.

FIG. 8F illustrates an overcoated wire stem 862, the distal end (tip) ofwhich is provided with a flat tab (pad) 864, in a manner similar to thetechnique described hereinabove with respect to FIG. 2E or 8A-8B.

An electrical interconnection is effected from the contact structure 862to an external electronic component 866 by means of a z-axis conductingadhesive 868 having conductive particles 870 suspended throughout. Whenthe electronic component (omitted in this view) to which the contactstructure 862 is urged (see arrow “C”) against the external component866, the adhesive 868 is compressed and becomes conductive.

Contacting a Central Portion of the Interconnection Element

According to an aspect of the invention, electrical contact between acontact structure mounted to a first electronic component can be made bya central portion of the wire stem which has been overcoated, ratherthan with the overcoat material.

FIG. 9A illustrates a wire stem 902 having a one end 902 a bonded to asubstrate 908 (e.g., a semiconductor device) and another end 902 bbonded to the substrate 908. The ends 902 a and 902 b are both bonded tothe same contact area 910 (e.g., bond pad) on the substrate 908.

FIG. 9B illustrates a next step, wherein a middle section of the wirestem is masked, such as with photoresist 912, to prevent subsequentovercoating (e.g., plating) of the masked portion of the wire stem.

FIG. 9C illustrates a next step, wherein the masked wire stem isovercoated with at least one layer of a material 920, such as nickel.

FIG. 9D illustrates a next step, wherein the masking material 912 isremoved. This leaves the central portion 902 c of the wire stem exposed,for making contact to another electronic component. In this context,gold is a good choice for the wire stem (902), due to its superiorelectrical contact properties, and it is not important that the overcoatmaterial 920 be electrically conductive (only that it establish thespring qualities of the resulting contact structure).

Multiple Free-Standing Wire Stems, Single Severing Step

In many of the embodiments presented hereinabove, it has been describedthat a wire (e.g., gold wire) can be bonded to a contact area on anelectronic component, shaped (including straight), and severed to befree-standing. In this manner, one end of the resulting wire stem isattached to the electronic component, and the other (free) end of thewire stem is available for making contact to another electroniccomponent. Generally, this requires individually forming eachfree-standing wire stem by repeating the steps of bonding and severing,for each wire stem.

According to an aspect of the invention, a plurality of (multiple)free-standing wire stems may be formed with a plurality of bonding stepsand a single severing step.

This embodiment can be understood by referencing thepreviously-described FIGS. 9A-9D. In this case, however, the ends 902 aand 902 b of the wire stem 902 may be bonded to the same contact area(910), or to two distinct contact areas (110, 110, not shown) on thesubstrate 908.

It is useful, in any of the embodiments disclosed herein wherein thecore becomes exposed through the overcoat (or, as in the previousexample of FIGS. 9A-9D) is not overcoated in a selected area, that agold wire stem (902) is first overcoated with a thin layer of tin, whichwill ultimately form a gold-tin eutectic, which is particularly usefulfor subsequent brazing operations.

In this embodiment, after removing the mask (912), the contact structureis heated to a sufficient temperature which will reflow the eutecticwire stem, and cause the exposed “bridge” (bight) 902 c between the two“legs” of the contact structure to “collapse”, resulting in twofree-standing contact structures 930 and 932, as shown in FIG. 9E, eachhaving eutectic tips (compare FIG. 49B of the PARENT CASE)—the tips(distal ends) being suitable for making contact to another electroniccomponent.

It is within the scope of this invention that this principle could beapplied to a sequence of loops, such as are shown in FIG. 24C of thePARENT CASE, to form multiple free-standing contact structures, withoutrequiring severing (e.g., electronic flame off) the free ends of each ofthe wire stems.

According to an embodiment of the invention, a plurality of single bondwires can be looped between two electronic components then severed, toform a double-plurality of free-standing wire stems (or overcoated wirestems).

For example, as shown in FIG. 9F, a single wire stem 942 has first end942 a mounted to a first electronic component 944 and a second end 942 bmounted to a second electronic component. Attention is directed to FIG.5 to illustrate the point that the two electronic components 944 and 946may be adjacent unsingulated semiconductor dies on a semiconductorwafer.

The example of FIG. 9F, where a wire stem (core) bridges two adjacentelectronic components (e.g., semiconductor dies) is illustrative of anexception to the “rule” that an interconnection element mounted to anunsingulated semiconductor die should not overhang an edge of thesemiconductor die to which it is attached (mounted).

As mentioned hereinabove, it is generally preferred that contactstructures mounted to unsingulated semiconductor dies, according to thepresent invention, do not extend over the edges of the dies—an areabetween two adjacent dies being a kerf area whereat a saw (or the like)will perform the operation of singulating (dicing) the dies.

As shown in FIG. 9F, the “bridge” portion of the wire stem 942 maysimply be sawed in the same operation as singulating the dies, with akerfing saw 950. Compare FIG. 4F.

The concept of making multiple free-standing contact structures withoutsevering can also be done with simple wirebond loops extending from aone terminal to another terminal, or from a terminal on a one die to aterminal on another die (compare FIG. 5). Additionally, a sequence ofloops, can be dealt with in this manner, leaving behind a large numberof free-standing wire stems, each mounted to a distinct terminal on theelectronic component.

It is also within the scope of this invention that the wire stems shownin FIG. 6B can have their topmost portions removed in any suitablemanner, which will separate the frame from the die(s). Rather than(e.g., dissolving the frame.

Generally, it is within the scope of this invention that loops may beformed (typically from terminal to terminal), and their bight portionsremoved in any suitable manner to result in two free-standing wire stemsper loop. For example, the loops can be encapsulated in a material suchas wax, and polished to separate the legs from one another. This can bedone before overcoating, or after overcoating. If done afterovercoating, the wire stem will be exposed, and the benefits of havingan eutectic wire stem can readily be realized.

For example, FIG. 10A illustrates a plurality (two of many shown) ofloops 1002 and 1004 formed between terminals 1006, 1008, 1010 and 1012on a surface of an electronic component 1014. FIG. 10B shows the loops1002 and 1004 encapsulated (e.g., potted) in a sacrificial material 1020(compare 836), such as hard wax. After being potted in this manner, agrinding (polishing) tool 1022 (compare 838) is brought to bear downupon the potted loops, grinding through the potting material 1020 andthrough the bight portions of the loops 1002 and 1004, until the loopsare severed. (This is indicated by the dashed line labelled “P in thefigure). Then, the potting material is removed (such as by melting).This results in each loop being two, free-standing wire stems (notillustrated). It is within the scope of this invention that the wirestems (loops) are overcoated either before potting, or after grinding(and removing the potting material). If the wire stems are overcoatedprior to potting, the wire stems would be exposed to form braze-abletips.

It is within the scope of this invention that the loop wire stems (e.g.,1002) extend from a terminal on a one electronic component to a terminalon another electronic component (rather than the two terminals being onthe same electronic component, as illustrated).

By fabricating multiple wire stems from loops, or the like, electroniccomponents (such as semiconductor devices) to which the loops (and,ultimately the free-standing contact structures) are mounted are sparedfrom the high, potentially damaging, voltages (e.g., thousands of voltsin a discharge) associated with electronic flame off techniques.

FIGS. 10C and 10D illustrate another technique for making free-standingwire stems, without electronic flame off, from loops, according to thepresent invention. As illustrated, a wire stem 1052 extending from aterminal 1062 on an electronic component 1058 is formed into a loop andbonded back onto the terminal (or onto another terminal on theelectronic component, or onto another terminal on another electroniccomponent). A substantial portion of one “branch” (leg) of the loop iscovered with a masking material 1054, such as photoresist. The loop isthen overcoated with a material 1058, and the photoresist is removed, atwhich point the previously-masked branch of the loop can also beremoved, resulting in a free-standing overcoated wire stem, asillustrated in FIG. 10D.

Although the invention has been illustrated and described in detail inthe drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered asillustrative and not restrictive in character—it being understood thatonly preferred embodiments have been shown and described, and that allchanges and modifications that come within the spirit of the inventionare desired to be protected. Undoubtedly, many other variations on the“themes” set forth hereinabove will occur to one having ordinary skillin the art to which the present invention most nearly pertains, and suchvariations are intended to be within the scope of the invention, asdisclosed herein. Several of these variations are set forth in theparent case.

For example, in any of the embodiments described or suggested hereinwhere a masking material (e.g., photoresist) is applied to a substrateand patterned such as by exposure to light passing through a mask andchemically removing portions of the masking material (i.e., conventionalphotolithographic techniques), alternate techniques can be employed,including directing a suitable collimated light beam (e.g., from anexcimer laser) at portions of the masking material (e.g., blankethardened photoresist) sought to be removed, thereby ablating theseportions of the masking material, or directly (without the use of amask) hardening portions of the masking material with a suitablecollimated light beam then chemically washing off the non-hardenedmasking material.

For example, in an automated process, multiple unsingulatedsemiconductor dies can be exercised (tested and/or burned-in) whileresident on a semiconductor wafer, and determinations can be made ofwhich dies are “good”, which pairs (or other multiples) of dies are“good”, and bins arranged (in the automated processing line) to sortthese different categories of dies upon their singulation from thewafer.

As mentioned hereinabove, the composite interconnection elements of thepresent invention are but an example of suitable resilient contactstructures that can be mounted directly to terminals of a semiconductordevice. Instrumentalities such as are disclosed in the aforementionedU.S. Pat. No. 5,414,298 fail in this regard.

The inventive technique of overcoating a generally non-resilient (albeiteasily shaped) core (wire, ribbon, etc.) and overcoating with aspringable (e.g., relatively high yield strength) material isdistinctive in that the overcoat serves a dual purpose: (1) it, for themost part, determines the physical properties of the resulting contactstructure (composite interconnection element), and (2) it securelyanchors the composite interconnection element to the terminal of theelectronic component.

Moreover, as mentioned hereinabove, there is ample space (714) availablebetween the resilient contact structures (728) to accommodate anydesired additional electronic component (s), such as decouplingcapacitor(s).

1-46. (canceled)
 47. An apparatus comprising: a semiconductor wafercomprising a plurality of unsingulated semiconductor devices on saidwafer, said semiconductor devices comprising a plurality of resilientcontact structures mounted thereon; a test board comprising a pluralityof contact elements, said test board disposed in proximity to saidsemiconductor wafer, forming pressure connections between ones of saidresilient contact structures and corresponding contact elements of saidtest board; and means for exercising at least one of said semiconductordevices.
 48. The apparatus of claim 47 further comprising means forelevating a temperature of said at least one semiconductor device whileexercising said at least one semiconductor device.
 49. The apparatus ofclaim 48, wherein said means for elevating is capable of elevating saidtemperature of said at least one semiconductor devices to least 125° C.50. The apparatus of claim 47, wherein said means for exercisingexercises said at least one semiconductor device by providing electricalsignals through said contact elements of said test board to said ones ofsaid resilient contact structures.
 51. The apparatus of claim 50 furthercomprising means for monitoring a response of said at least onesemiconductor device to said electrical signals.
 52. The apparatus ofclaim 51 further comprising means for evaluating said response.